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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26783872">The Eleventh Hour</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimeLord2000/pseuds/TimeLord2000'>TimeLord2000</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Doctor Who, Stranger Things (TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>El Beats the Shit out of Brenner in Chapter 81, Telepathy, Time Lord Telepathy (Doctor Who), Time Travel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 05:29:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>103</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>263,340</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26783872</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimeLord2000/pseuds/TimeLord2000</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor, freshly regenerated, is falling down to Earth, but instead of crash landing in Leadworth, 1996, he instead crashes in Hawkins, 1983. What does this change? Well...</p><p>It doesn't count as kidnapping if the kid has no one else, does it?</p><p>Written to be accessible for non-Doctor Who fans, so even if you haven't watched Doctor Who, please check it out.</p><p>BREAKING NEWS: The Doctor has adopted yet ANOTHER teenager... god help him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Eleventh Doctor &amp; Eleven | Jane Hopper, Eleventh Doctor &amp; Robin Buckley, Eleventh Doctor/River Song, The Doctor/The Doctor's TARDIS, Will Byers/Eleven | Jane Hopper</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>96</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>94</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Down to Earth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor was not having a good day, by any stretch of the word. Let’s do a quick run-through of the events, shall we?</p><p>First, his oldest friend/enemy had been brought back to life by some humans who probably had no idea what in the hell they were actually doing. Second, his home planet returned out of the Time War, which would’ve destroyed everything. Then, after losing previously mentioned best frenemy as well as Gallifrey once again, the Doctor had taken in a big dose of radiation… and then he held back the resulting regeneration long enough so that when it did finally occur, he’d wound up completely totaling the TARDIS.</p><p>In all, he’d really ought to learn to stay away from Christmas.</p><p>Now, he was hanging out of the TARDIS as it careened wildly above the Earth, engines spluttering as the old girl desperately tried to maintain altitude.</p><p>Something near the console exploded, jostling the whole ship, and making the Doctor’s already unsteady grip even weaker.</p><p>Biting down on the sonic screwdriver in his mouth, the Doctor tried to pull himself back into the TARDIS, legs instinctively kicking and trying to push off against thin air.</p><p>Was this new body going to be the physically weak one? Unable to do even a single pull up if his life depended on it?</p><p>Well, at least he found out now, instead of later on down the line. If there was a later on, he had to pull himself back into the exploding TARDIS first.</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor yelped, as the TARDIS began spinning, almost throwing him off.</p><p>The Doctor finally pulled himself over the edge, into the console room, before a chiming noise got his attention, and he turned to look.</p><p>Oh, Big Ben was looking great this time of year. You couldn’t even tell a spaceship had crashed into it.</p><p>Oh wait, that was Big Ben, and the TARDIS was about to run head-on into it.</p><p>The Doctor spat out the sonic screwdriver into his hand, and pointed it at the console, pressing down the button.</p><p>A lever on the edge of the control console moved by itself, and the TARDIS sprung up like a rocket, throwing the Doctor back out of the edge.</p><p>“Ahhhh!” The Doctor screamed as he hung on, narrowly missing the very top of Big Ben by just a few inches.</p><p>With the TARDIS heading back up into the sky, the Doctor pulled himself up into his trusty ship, and forced the doors closed behind him, leaning back against the old faux wood.</p><p>The coral pillars were almost completely shattered, and there were fires everywhere, but for now, the Doctor was alive, and that was what he reflected on as he took in deep gulps of air.</p><p>The console room suddenly shook and the Doctor was thrown to the floor, as the TARDIS went spinning back into the time vortex at random.</p><p>--------------------</p><p>Thunder clapped overhead, causing Eleven to jump. To her ears, totally ignorant of the outside world, it sounded all too much like the gunfire that marked the nice diner owner’s death.</p><p>Water fell from the sky in droves, soaking the girl from head to toe, as she stood, shivering behind a nearby bush.</p><p>She wanted help so badly. The only one she’d seen so far who had given her that was the nice man in the diner… dead now.</p><p>There were others out there. It was odd to her, she’d never seen another human being so tiny. She always thought she was special in that regard.</p><p>The one in the front suddenly stopped, as Eleven backed into the bush.</p><p>“Do you guys hear that?” He asked the two, over the roaring rain and the wind.</p><p>Eleven gulped, figuring she’d been caught, and prepared herself to fight her way out of the situation.</p><p>Until, that is, she heard the scraping noise.</p><p>It was odd, a sort of warbly wheezing that grew ever louder. Eleven looked up to the source, and gasped, as a big blue wooden box came plummeting to earth.</p><p>“Holy shit!” One of the three across the way yelled, looking up at the flying monstrosity as well.</p><p>“Move!” The leader yelled, pulling the others out of the way, as the box crashed into the ground, sending water, twigs, and leaves flying everywhere.</p><p>Eleven tilted her head curiously, as she tried to make sense of the markings on the outside. A presence brushed against her mind, and she gasped.</p><p>She didn’t know how, but the box was… hurting. In pain.</p><p>The leader of the three took shaky steps back from it, and turned to run, fear coming off of him in waves, as the other two glanced at each other, and sprinted to keep up.</p><p>Something akin to madness and wanderlust, as well as kindness, radiated out from the blue box.</p><p>Eleven glanced at the others’ receding forms, and slowly approached the box. Smoke emanated from the seams in the doors, the windows glowed a fiery orange, and she even thought she could hear metal groaning under stress, but no metal was nearby. Eleven slowly reached her hand out, pressing it against the old wood.</p><p>She railed back in sudden surprise as the doors were thrown open, and a grappling hook attached to a string came flying out, before being dragged against the ground, catching on the root of a nearby tree.</p><p>Eleven stared up, as a hand grabbed onto the ledge, and then another one, before a man popped his head out.</p><p>The man’s face was dripping with water, and he smiled wildly, taking in deep, heavy breaths.</p><p>“…Can I have an apple?” The man asked, pulling himself up, as Eleven stared on in confusion. “All I can think about… apples. I love apples. Maybe I’m having a craving! That’s new-never had cravings before!” The man grunted as he threw his leg over, straddling the edge as he looked down into the box.</p><p>A rustled tie hung loosely from his neck, blue shirt slightly ripped and untucked, the only thing looking slightly intact about him were his trousers.</p><p>Eleven jumped, as a mechanical chime sounded from deep inside the box.</p><p>“Look at that!” The man smiled, looking down into the box.</p><p>Eleven looked at him up and down. “Okay?”</p><p>“Just fell into the library.” He answered, blinking a bit of the rain out of his eyes. “Hell of a climb back up.” He commented, trying to wipe his face on his sleeves, before noticing he was sitting in the middle of a downpour.</p><p>The suit he was wearing didn’t look like the ones the bad people wore, but it was similar. “…bad man?”</p><p>The man’s eyes narrowed, as he seemed to be examining her, hefting his other leg over the edge as he looked on. “…Why? Are there bad men about?”</p><p>Eleven inwardly felt relieved, a bit partially. If he didn’t know them, he wasn’t one of them. But… why was he here? His box landed there, he must’ve been there for a reason. “…Monster?”</p><p>The man’s looked Eleven over anxiously. “Monster? Wha-“ The man suddenly spasmed, writhing in pain, as he fell from his box, onto the ground.</p><p>Eleven took a step forward.</p><p>“Don’t worry!” The man’s hand shot out. “This is all perfectly norm-“ He gasped, spitting out a small gust of shimmering gold dust, which harmlessly vanished into the air.</p><p>Eleven looked on, curious, but slightly frightened. But, then again, she could probably take him down in a millisecond if he was a threat. “…who are you?”</p><p>The man smiled, looking down at his hands, which seemed to glow gold for a second. “I don’t know yet.” He admitted. “I’m still cooking. Does it scare you?”</p><p>Eleven tilted her head. “…pretty.”</p><p>“No, not this.” He elaborated kindly. “The monster. Does it scare you?”</p><p>Eleven gulped and nodded.</p><p>The man beamed. “Well then!” He jumped to his feet suddenly, Eleven taking a step back. “No time to lose! I’m the Doctor. Do everything I say. Don’t ask stupid questions. And don’t wander off.” He directed, turning about on his heel, marching off in one direction.</p><p>Which just so happened to be right into a tree trunk, as he went falling to the ground.</p><p>Eleven looked down at him, tilting her head.</p><p>“Early days.” The Doctor commented. “Steering’s a bit off.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Fish Custard</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>If there was one thing the Doctor could say he liked about small-town America, was that after dark hit, the chances of being spotted by anything were effectively nil.</p><p>He couldn’t get the little girl to show him to a house, not that he could blame her. Strangers falling out of the sky, asking you to take them home, what sane kid would accept that kind of offer?</p><p>But, he needed to get his regeneration stabilized, and fast. So, instead of asking her to show him to her house, he asked for her to show him to a grocery store.</p><p>Sonicing his way through the door like it wasn’t even there, the Doctor immediately set towards the produce aisle, the craving for apples acting more like an addictive compulsion.</p><p>The little buzzcut girl looked around on the inside of the store, like she hadn’t been inside of it before, as the Doctor picked the biggest, reddest apple he could see.</p><p>The Time Lord looked at it with hungry eyes and took a big chunk out of it.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened. <em>‘Nope! Not good! Definitely not good! Disgusting, I’d say!’ </em>He thought to himself as he spat the chunk of apple out.</p><p>“Blech.” The Doctor tried to get the taste off his tongue, as the girl looked on in confusion. “No, not apples. Apples are rubbish, I hate apples. Not craving apples. Craving… sugar! Yoghurt has sugar in it!” The Doctor madly sniffed at the air, the little girl looking at him like he was insane, as he sprinted down another aisle.</p><p>The Doctor yanked a container of yoghurt off the shelf, tearing the top off, and throwing it back like it was a can of soda. The Time Lord’s eyes went saucer-sized, as he spit the yoghurt out all over the floor, just inches away from the little girl’s bare feet.</p><p>“Not yoghurt! Yoghurt’s disgusting! It’s just stuff,” The Doctor threw the container over his shoulder, something falling as the plastic hit it. “With bits in it!” He wildly snapped his fingers.</p><p>The buzzcut girl tilted her head. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“New mouth!” The Doctor replied, wiping his mouth of the residual milk product. “It’s like eating after brushing your teeth, everything tastes-“ The Doctor suddenly spasmed, “RAW!” He slapped his forehead, trying to knock the neurons responsible back into place.</p><p>The girl looked the Doctor up and down, having never seen anyone act like that before. “What’s wrong?” She repeated.</p><p>“What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you?” The Doctor repeated, looking her up and down in return. He suddenly sniffed again. “I smell vegetable oil. Let’s fry something.”</p><p>----------</p><p>“Mhmhmhm…” The Doctor chuckled, looking at the makeshift cooker made from a radiator in the break room. A skillet had been found on one of the aisles, and in it, was frying the current object of the Doctor’s desires. “Bacon.” Of course, the Doctor thought it was obvious, he hadn’t been craving sugar, he’d been craving protein!</p><p>He’d spat that out too.</p><p>----------</p><p>So far, the Doctor was finding nothing to satisfy his post-regeneration craving. Beans were evil, bread and butter was a special sort of wicked that could only be countered by throwing it out like a frisbee, carrots didn’t even <em>deserve </em>the honor of being mentioned… and about a dozen other food combinations were tried and thrown out.</p><p>The Doctor smacked himself repeatedly, as the little girl stopped, pulling open a freezer door, and taking out a box of-</p><p>“Frozen waffles!?” The Doctor incredulously demanded. “Are you insane!?”</p><p>“Not for you.” She stated.</p><p>The Doctor huffed, turning back around, before his eyes locked on something in the freezer. “I know what I need, I need, I… need…” His tongue poked out of the corner of his mouth, as he pulled open the door, and pulled out a box. “Fish fingers.” He held it up in the girl’s direction, before sprinting off down yet another aisle, the tiny human trying to keep up. “And custard.” He presented, to her.</p><p>Of all things, that turned out to be the winning combination.</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor let out a happy sigh, as he finally felt his brain calm down by taking in the nutrients it so desperately needed. Across from him, the little girl sat, munching on that box of frozen waffles like it was a gourmet dish.</p><p>The two of them were in the store’s break room, the only place they could find at this hour with a working microwave. Fortunately for them, they’d both had picked foods that could be cooked in the microwave, saving them the trouble of having to use that ridiculously hot radiator as a cooker.</p><p>The Doctor finished the last bite of the current bit of processed fish and took a big gulp of the custard strait from the bowl, sitting it back down with a big smile and custard mustache on his face.</p><p>The little girl tilted her head, looking at the Doctor inscrutably. “Funny.” She commented.</p><p>“Am I?” The Doctor asked in response. “Good… funny’s good.” Better than weird. Funny meant you were the trustworthy sort of odd, not the ‘hide your kids and wife’ sort of odd. He reached down for another bit of fish, dipping it into the custard. “What’s your name?” He asked, taking a bite.</p><p>The girl paused for a moment, and held out her left arm, turning it over for the Doctor to see. A little tattoo was etched into her skin, looking back up at the Doctor.</p><p>
  <em>‘011’</em>
</p><p>The Doctor felt a spike of anger run through him; he was no idiot, he knew exactly what a number like that meant, but kept a calm exterior for the girl. “Eleven… That’s funny.” He tried to smile. “I’m an eleven too.”</p><p>Eleven looked intrigued. “Really?”</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor replied. “Eleventh face.” He elaborated, pointing at his face. He went for another bite of his fish custard. “So, what about your mum and dad?” He asked. “Little girl out this late by herself, they must be worried.” <em>‘Though they can’t be that good if they tagged their daughter like a bit of cattle.’</em></p><p>Eleven’s demeanor quickly became stiffened and fearful. “Papa…”</p><p>The Doctor, having been a parent himself, albeit centuries ago, picked up on her fear. “Your dad’s not a nice man, is he?”</p><p>Eleven swallowed. “Bad man.”</p><p>“So, you ran away from home.” The Doctor guessed. “All out on your own, in the dark, by yourself.”</p><p>“Not scared.” Eleven stated.</p><p>“Of course not!” The Doctor replied. “You’re not scared of anything! Box falls out of the sky, man falls out of the box, man eats fish custard…” He took a bite. “And look at you. Just sitting there. A little on guard, but not scared… So, you know what I think?”</p><p>Eleven raised an eyebrow.</p><p>The Doctor leaned in. “That must be one hell of a scary monster you found.”</p><p>Eleven’s blank gaze in response told the Doctor all he needed to know.</p><p>“But,” The Doctor finished off the current bit of fish, going for yet another. “You know what? You got lucky?”</p><p>“Lucky?” Eleven repeated.</p><p>“Because,” The Doctor grinned, “You’re talking to the man who fights the monsters.</p><p>-----------</p><p>With his regeneration stabilized, the Doctor marched purposefully back towards the TARDIS, Eleven in tow.  His brain was already working at lightspeed, trying to figure out a plan.</p><p>“The monster,” The Doctor directed to Eleven as she followed. “Describe it to me.”</p><p>“Um…” The little girl stuttered. “Grey. Thin, tall… no face.”</p><p>The Doctor shot a glance at her. Not very helpful, there were a dozen different creatures in this quadrant of the Milky Way alone with that description.</p><p>“Was it wearing a suit?” The Doctor pressed.</p><p>“Suit?” Eleven repeated.</p><p>“Yeah, suit.” The Doctor gestured down at his ripped ensemble. “Like, you know--except not all raggedy.”</p><p>Eleven shook her head. Not dealing with homo exilis then.</p><p>“Have you seen anything else?” The Doctor pressed. “How it moves, what it eats?”</p><p>“It…” Eleven began uncertainly. “Rips.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped. “Rips.”</p><p>Eleven nodded. “Holes. In walls, floors.”</p><p>Ah, he was dealing with a creature that could rip holes in space. That explained the odd sort of fuzzy feeling clouding his time senses.</p><p>The Doctor set back on track, walking through the woods. “And what does it eat?”</p><p>Eleven swallowed. “People.”</p><p>The Doctor felt another surge of anger. He was well aware that humans were considered delicacies on some planets, but that was millennia ago. Earth was a level five civilization now, so under Shadow Proclamation law, it was a big galactic no-no for any alien species or being to exploit Earth or its people for their own purposes.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’ll stop it.” The Doctor pledged, as they finally came up on the TARDIS. “Oh look!” The Doctor beamed, seeing his faithful ship standing upright. “She’s righted herself!”</p><p>Eleven stood for a moment, curious, even as the Doctor continued approaching the outside. “…how?”</p><p>“She’s very clever, the old girl.” The Doctor answered, still smiling as he walked up to the doors. The Doctor went to push them open, the doors slamming back against him as they refused to open. “Oh… oh, come on, not now!” The Doctor groaned, trying to open them again. “Come on, please!”</p><p>“What’s wrong?” Eleven asked, catching up with the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor let out a frustrated groan, as he kicked the door. “She’s rebuilding. My fault, really. Won’t let anyone inside until it’s finished.”</p><p>Eleven tilted her head, as the Doctor turned back to her, with an unpleasant grimace. “We’re going to have to find somewhere to stay the night.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Little El</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Eleven anxiously looked around as the Doctor strode up to a cashpoint (wait, America, they called them ATMs) in the middle of downtown and began fiddling around for something in his pockets.</p><p>“What are you…?” Eleven asked, as the Doctor pulled out a thin, tube shaped device, with a blue tip.</p><p>The Doctor pressed it against the screen, and held down the button, the device buzzing as cash began to come flying out like confetti.</p><p>“Sonic screwdriver.” The Doctor answered, placing it away and grabbing the cash that hadn’t been ruined by the rain. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Earth; you can’t do anything without money. So, first things first; clothes.” He looked down at himself, and then to Eleven. “Can’t stop a monster if we’ve been put in the slammer because we look like we went three rounds with somebody.”</p><p>“Clothes…” Eleven repeated.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor stated, wiping his face. He looked up at the rain pouring down from the sky. “Maybe an umbrella too.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor and Eleven broke into another store, this one dedicated more to clothing than anything else.</p><p>Hurriedly darting about inside, the Doctor looked between the racks for anything that his new personality decided it liked.</p><p>It took a while, yes, but honestly, it was kind of fun. Rather like a kid playing dress-up, and at the end, you got to keep the clothing you put on.</p><p>The first thing the Doctor did, however, was help get Eleven sorted out. The little girl had been walking around in nothing but an oversized shirt, and while that may have been sufficient to just sleep in, it wasn’t the proper fare for an adventurer.</p><p>The Doctor huffed to himself at that. Was the last Doctor so lonely that this new one was willing to take on a literal child at this point? Well, maybe it would be good. It would certainly turn out less complicated then the last few people he’d brought with him.</p><p>In the end, Eleven had only chosen a pair of baggy sweatpants, a sweater, and some tennis shoes.</p><p>Now, the Doctor decided, it was his go.</p><p>Darting all about the store like a mad chicken, the Doctor grabbed anything and everything that caught his eye. Different assortments of ties, trousers, jackets, and shirts were all grabbed up, as the Doctor sprinted to the changing room.</p><p>It took the Time Lord a few tries to get the winning combination, but when he did…</p><p>“Well!” The Doctor began theatrically, throwing back the curtain for Eleven to see. “What do you think?”</p><p>He gestured down at his outfit; a faint pink dress shirt covered by a tan tweed jacket. Crimson suspenders held up a pair of black trousers, his feet clad in a pair of obsidian colored boots.</p><p>Eleven took a step forward, and tilted her head, reaching up for the accessory around his neck.</p><p>“It’s a bow tie.” The Doctor informed her, gently fixing the bow tie that matched his suspenders. “It’s cool, isn’t it?”</p><p>“Cool?” Eleven repeated.</p><p>“Yep. Bow ties are cool.” The Doctor smiled giddily.</p><p>“No, but… cool?”</p><p>Oh, she was asking what the word meant. “Means hip, fashionable, in with the in crowd.” The Doctor explained. “Something’s cool, it means you like it.</p><p>Eleven slowly nodded. “…cool.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded approvingly. “That’s right, now…” He took stock of their surroundings. “Unless we want to be caught for sleeping overnight in a store, we should probably find a hotel…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah, you see?” The Doctor smiled, laying down on the bed just across the way from Eleven. “Comfy.” Eleven tilted her head again. “It feels nice.” The Doctor explained, putting his feet up.</p><p>Eleven nodded. “Comfy.”</p><p>“Course,” The Doctor quickly amended. “Not as comfy as the TARDIS, but it’ll do.”</p><p>“TARDIS?” Eleven repeated.</p><p>“That blue box I came in.” The Doctor referred to. “It’s a spaceship, called the TARDIS. Time And Relative Dimension In Space.”</p><p>“Space… ship?” Eleven questioned.</p><p>“Yeah.” The Doctor confirmed. “It can go anywhere?”</p><p>“Anywhere…” Eleven repeated. “Away from here?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Why… do you want to get away from here?”</p><p>Eleven shrunk slightly under the blanket on her bed and nodded.</p><p>“Won’t your… papa miss you?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>Eleven stiffened. “Bad.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled inwardly. That was what he liked about human children. Intuitive, no matter what you tried to teach them otherwise, they’d form opinions of their own. Kids were smarter than they looked.</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor sniffed, giving it some thought. “I suppose the TARDIS is a bit big for just me…” He muttered to himself. “But,” He pointed at her. “We deal with this ‘monster’ first.” He laid out, looking her dead in the eye. “Understand?”</p><p>Eleven said nothing but nodded vehemently.</p><p>“Good.” The Doctor laid down. “By the time we wake up tomorrow morning, the TARDIS should be repaired, and then, we can start fixing this.”</p><p>Eleven nodded slightly placing her head down on her pillow, as the Doctor soniced the lights off.</p><p>“Hmm… I’ve been thinking.” The Doctor began, speaking up in the dark. “Eleven may be what you’re called, but it’s not really a <em>name</em>… People are going to think it’s weird if I call you that while we’re out and about tomorrow.”</p><p>Even in the darkness, the Doctor could see as Eleven tilted her head, wondering where the Doctor was going with his statements.</p><p>“Do you have a name?” The Doctor asked. “Other than Eleven, I mean?”</p><p>The little girl said nothing, as she shook her head.</p><p>“Hmm…” The Doctor looked up at the ceiling. “Well then, we’ll just have to come up with one… Eleven… E-lev-en… El-even… Yes, that’s it. El.” The Doctor looked over to her. “How about it? El.”</p><p>Eleven furrowed her eyebrows, as she considered it. “El… yes.”</p><p>“Well then.” The Doctor smiled. “Goodnight, El.”</p><p>El nodded, and simply closed her eyes going still.</p><p>As the Doctor himself prepared to wait out the night, he found himself looking up at the ceiling, anger boiling inside him. After dealing with El’s ‘monster’ he was going to find her parents.</p><p>If they were smart, they’d be begging for UNIT’s mercy by the end of it.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El blinked sleep out of her eyes, sitting up, looking at the morning light streaming through the window. It took her a moment to register where she was, before the events of the night before returned to her.</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor, sitting over at the table looked at her with a smile. “You’re up! I was going to wake you, but you looked so peaceful.” He said, leaning over electronic guts spilled out over the table. If the perfectly tidy bed was any indication, the Time Lord hadn’t slept at all.</p><p>El’s head tilted curiously, as she looked at the assorted bits of scrap.</p><p>The Doctor followed the direction of El’s look and smiled sheepishly. “I got bored. So,” He clapped his hands. “Ready to hunt a monster?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“First rule of monster hunting,” The Doctor exposited, El walking beside him down the streets of downtown Hawkins. “Watch everything. If anything looks out of place, it probably is.”</p><p>El slowly nodded, and looked around, stopping as she saw something nearby. She walked over to it, the Doctor trailing behind her, as she came to a missing poster on a telephone pole.</p><p>“Missing…” The Doctor read. “Will Byers.” He glanced down at her. “He a friend of yours?”</p><p>El shook her head but pointed at Will’s frozen smiling face. “Saw him.”</p><p>The Doctor looked intrigued. “Saw him… Where?”</p><p>“Woods.” El answered. “After…” Images flashed in her mind. The monster clawing its way out of the crack in the wall, running as fast as she could to get away…</p><p>“Hey…” The Doctor crouched down to her eye level, looking at her in concern. “You okay?” He knew the signs of PTSD. To see them manifest in such a small child…</p><p>El blinked. “Fine.” She stated, looking back at the poster. She pressed her finger to the paper. “Monster.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “You think the monster got him?”</p><p>El said nothing, nodding seriously.</p><p>The Doctor stood tall, ripping one of the little phone numbers off the poster. He tilted the little scrap as he read it, his eyes darted about. “Then let’s check it out, shall we?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Trust Me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor could honestly say, if there was one part he’d found good about getting stuck in the nineteen-eighties, were the phone books. Just walking into the local library, the Doctor was able to quickly flick through the pages of the big yellow book. Matching the phone number from the poster to the corresponding one in the book, the Time Lord quickly came up with an address, and set off in that direction.</p><p>Before long, the Time Lord and the little girl came up on a house a little far into the woods.</p><p>“Alright, let me do the talking.” The Doctor quietly instructed, looking to El as they set foot onto the porch. “Got that?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>The Doctor, satisfied, turned and began knocking on the door. Through the walls, the Time Lord could hear someone inside rustling and jostling things around as they scrambled for the door.</p><p>The door was pulled open, and a woman, slightly haggard looking, popped her face out. “Oh…” She looked between the Doctor and El. “Can I help you?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled charmingly. “Yes. Are you Joyce Byers?”</p><p>The woman looked between them, curious. “Yeah.”</p><p>“Great.” The Doctor reached into his pockets, flashing a leather wallet (one of the few things other than the sonic screwdriver and the TARDIS key that he’d salvaged from his old clothes) and Joyce focused on it, seemingly reading. Though El saw the paper to be blank, it was evident that Joyce saw something on it.</p><p>“Doctor John Smith.” The Doctor introduced. “United Nations Intelligence Taskforce.”</p><p>“The UN?” Joyce questioned.</p><p>“Yes, we were in the area and heard about your missing son.” The Doctor told her.</p><p>Joyce looked suspicious, even partly fearful for a moment. “What does the UN have to do with this?”</p><p>“Practically nothing,” The Doctor admitted, “I’m just a concerned citizen in the area, who thought he’d might be able to help with the resources he has. May I?”</p><p>Joyce looked put off slightly. “I don’t know…”</p><p>“Joyce,” The Doctor began. “I want to help you, I do, and I want to make sure that the same being who’s responsible for your son’s disappearance can’t cause another one. But I can’t do that unless you help. Please… will you help me?”</p><p>Joyce stood there, looking at the Doctor blankly, before stepping back, allowing him and El access into the house.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes darted around at the Christmas lights and other decorations scattered around, as Joyce shut the door behind them.</p><p>“Sorry, about-“ Joyce gestured around.</p><p>“Don’t worry about it.” The Doctor told her, “My own house is in way worse of a state at the moment.” He looked to El, chuckling a little at his own inside joke. The girl remained stoic, and the Doctor quickly stopped laughing, cutting it off with a cough. “So, Mrs. Byers… How about we start with the night it happened.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>As it happened, Joyce’s testimony of the events of the night Will vanished wasn’t anything too helpful. Everything was perfectly normal, no lights in the sky, no impossible natural phenomena rocked the down, and there were no disappearances leading up to Will’s.</p><p>For some reason, Will just up and vanished in the middle of the night.</p><p>But, it was the events of the days afterwards that caught the Doctor’s attention. The night after the storm, Joyce started experiencing odd phenomena in her house. The wall in Will’s room stretching like something was crawling out of it, lights turning on by themselves, music playing of its own accord.</p><p>The Doctor bit his lip, curious. “Can you take me to where this happened?” He requested.</p><p>Joyce obliged, leading him into Will’s room.</p><p>“You must think I’m insane.” Joyce said, as the Doctor walked up to the wall where the event took place, El looking at the other things in Will’s room curiously, having never interacted with many of them.</p><p>“Goodness, no.” The Doctor kindly replied. “A little shaken up, but never insane.”</p><p>“Alright, because, I told my son, and then…” Joyce rambled trailing off. Her eyes flickered over to El, who picked up a cassette tape curiously, examining it. “What’s she doing?”</p><p>The Doctor turned to El. “Just taking stock. She’s curious like that. Right, stand back.” He directed them, pointing the sonic screwdriver at the wall. The warped metal felt awkward to hold, and the emitter’s buzzing was unsteady, as the Doctor tried to run a scan on the wall.</p><p>“What is that?” Joyce peered over.</p><p>“It’s, uh… sciency.” The Doctor replied, smacking the device to try and get it to work. <em>‘I knew I should’ve stopped by the TARDIS first.’ </em>He grumbled mentally, as the sonic screwdriver finally bleeped back something. Telepathic readouts filled the Doctor’s vision, as he looked at the wall. “I see…”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Doctor?”</p><p>“You were right, Joyce…” The Doctor said, pressing his ear to the wall, feeling the smooth surface. “Something tried to bust through here, alright.”</p><p>Joyce looked pale. “W-Well, what was it? I didn’t see anything on the outside.”</p><p>“Because,” The Doctor snapped over to face her. “It wasn’t trying to break through from the outside, it was trying to break through from the other side.”</p><p>“…What?” Joyce questioned.</p><p>“There’s a crack.” The Doctor elaborated. “Microscopic, invisible. But it’s not <em>in </em>the wall.”</p><p>“Then, where?” El asked.</p><p>“Everywhere.” The Doctor told her, turning back to the wall. “In the universe itself. Two parts of space and time… being pressed together by something.”</p><p>“What do you mean, two parts?” Joyce demanded.</p><p>“On the other side of that crack, is somewhere else.” The Doctor elaborated. “Could be the other side of the planet, could be the other side of the universe, could be right down the street. Whatever’s taken your son is able to move using these cracks.”</p><p>Joyce paled. “’Whatever?’”</p><p>The Doctor looked back to her. “Because you’re right. Those lights turning on, that music playing by itself… that <em>was </em>Will. Tell me,” The Doctor requested, “What are all these Christmas lights about?”</p><p>---------</p><p>“I thought- Well, maybe I believed-“ Joyce stuttered, removing a white sheet covering the wall, “I figured that if Will was still alive, and he was trying to talk to me, then maybe…”</p><p>“Maybe you could find a way to make sense of what he was saying.” The Doctor finished, a beaming smile making its way across his face. “Oh, that’s brilliant.”</p><p>Joyce glanced at him. “You think so?”</p><p>“I know so.” The Doctor replied. “Most people would think it was a freak electrical fluke… glad to see you thought otherwise.”</p><p>“So…” Joyce stammered, “What do we do?”</p><p>“If it’s possible to talk to Will, then maybe we can get him to tell us where he is.” The Doctor outlined. “Then we can go rescue him.” He looked at Joyce. “Feeling up to it?”</p><p>Joyce swallowed, looking at the sign painted on the wall. Slowly, but surely, she nodded.</p><p>The Doctor smiled, as he looked back to the wall. “Better than a Ouija board in any case.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>It took Joyce a little while to psych herself up, but when she did, the Doctor was standing right by her side, and El was standing a little way away, looking.</p><p>“Okay…” Joyce whispered, rubbing her hands anxiously as she looked at the wall, “Okay, baby, talk to me. Where are you?”</p><p>A moment later, the lights began to flash, and El gasped in surprise, the Doctor smiling, as Joyce looked at each flashing light.</p><p>“R… I… G… H… T…” Joyce read. “H… E… R… E…”</p><p>“Right here.” The Doctor put it together for her.</p><p>Joyce began to stammer. “I-I don’t know what that means. Will, I need you to tell me what to do. What should I do? How do we get to you? How do we find you?”</p><p>The lights began flashing again.</p><p>“R… U… N…” Joyce read fearfully.</p><p>“Doctor!” El screamed, as the lights in the entire house began to go crazy, flashing all at once.</p><p>The Doctor whipped around to face El, who was standing there frozen, staring at the wall as something looked like it was trying to claw its way through.</p><p>“Stand back!” The Doctor ordered, pulling El away, putting himself between Joyce, El, and the wall.</p><p>Something growled, as a grey, three-fingered hand burst through the wallpaper, crawling out.</p><p>“Monster!” El screeched, as the thing emerged fully, and stood up.</p><p>“Guys, now is probably a good time to run!” The Doctor stated, grabbing a wooden chair nearby, pushing it threateningly towards the creature. “Run!”</p><p>Joyce sprinted for the door, pulling El along, scrambling to get outside.</p><p>Time slowed down around the Doctor, as he tried to get a good look at the thing that he was facing. No face, just like El had told him, and it was thin, almost skeletal. Its legs didn’t bend like most humanoids, and it had three claws.</p><p>The Doctor grumbled, as that didn’t tell him enough to go on. Time began to speed back up.</p><p>“Identify yourself by species and planet of origin!” The Doctor ordered, taking slow, creeping steps back.</p><p>The creature’s mandibles opened like a flower, and it roared, shaking the house.</p><p><em>‘Oh, feral animal, then.’</em> The Doctor recognized. <em>‘Which makes me feel less squeamish about doing this!’ </em>He threw the chair at the creature with all his might, before sprinting out after Joyce and El, slamming the door and sonicing the lock shut so the creature couldn’t follow.</p><p>It took the Time Lord only a moment to catch up, but eventually he did, Joyce standing in front of a car, hugging someone tightly, while El looked on, bemused.</p><p>The Doctor came to a stop, doubling over, heaving. “It’s… Well, I don’t know what it is.”</p><p>The person hugging Joyce looked at the Doctor, demandingly. “What <em>what</em> is!?”</p><p>“Well, I don’t know what it is, or I would tell you.” The Doctor retorted. <em>‘Hm… similar facial structures to Joyce, older than Will, obviously not Will himself… Ah!’ </em>“You must be Will’s older brother!” The Doctor greeted with an excited shake of hands. “I was just here, helping the investigation.” The Doctor’s eyes focused on what looked like sirens in the distance, approaching. “…And that’s my cue to leave. Joyce,” He turned to her, “Don’t mention a word you saw to anyone, they’ll think you’re insane.”</p><p>“B-But-“ Joyce stuttered.</p><p>“I’m the only one around here who knows about stuff like that.” The Doctor stated. “Come along, El.” He guided, gently taking her hand as he began walking.</p><p>“W-Wait!” Joyce called. “Where are you going!?”</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’ll be back!” The Doctor returned. A loud scraping, wheezing filled his ears for a moment, and something began to grow hot in his pocket. The Doctor pulled the source out, looking at his TARDIS key glowing gold.</p><p>The Doctor turned to El with an excited smile. “Oh, you are gonna love this.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. El in the TARDIS</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor looked up at the night moon rising high into the sky, the town having gone dark. Did he really sleep that long? They couldn’t have been up for more than a few hours…</p><p>The regeneration must’ve been worse than he thought.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head to himself, as he helped guide El along through the woods, stepping over tree branches and old logs, as they came up on the TARDIS. The Doctor stopped, taking a look at the outside of his ship excitedly.</p><p>She’d had a little bit of a facelift, evidently.</p><p>The blue paint on the outside was a much more vibrant shade of blue as opposed to the almost grey shade it had been. The lamp on top had changed slightly, and the St John’s Ambulance badge that real police boxes had was back on the right door, across from the backlit sign of the telephone door. And, in all, the outside looked sturdier, better put together, out of newer wood.</p><p>“Different.” El commented.</p><p>The Doctor turned to her, with a slight smile. “Just wait until you see the inside. Alright…” He turned back to the TARDIS. “What have you got for me this time?” He asked, running up to the doors. He slid his key into the lock, and turned it, pushing the door open. “Oh…” The Doctor breathed, looking at the new control room. “Look at you. Oh you sexy thing…” The Doctor madly grinned. “Look at you!” He excitedly pushed his way in fully, taking a good look at the new control room the TARDIS had designed.</p><p>El peeked her head in, and gasped.</p><p>A giant room, bigger than the Byers’s house alone, was straight through the doors of the little blue box. Copper paneling with hexagonal light sources dotted on it ran up the wall to her left, to her right, a curved, coral-like structure with a hole carved into it let deeper into the ship. A little far into the room, was stairs leading up to a glass platform. Under the platform wasn’t much, but on the platform was a hexagonal control console, bits of clutter and junk on each panel making up the controls.</p><p>“…pretty…” El breathed, slowly walking in.</p><p>“I know!” The Doctor excitedly beamed, dashing around the console, “She’s beautiful, isn’t she!?” The Doctor leaned over the console. “You’ve really outdone yourself this time…” He whispered to the TARDIS, stroking a bit of the console.</p><p>In response, something on the console bleeped, as something extended out.</p><p>“Oh, a new one!” The Doctor breathed, taking the device out of the slot. He held it out, and pressed the button down, the emitter lighting up green. “Thanks, dear.” He gratefully patted the console, as he tossed the old sonic screwdriver away, placing the new one in its place. “So!” The Doctor turned to El, throwing his arms out. “What do you think?”</p><p>El looked around in wonder, as she slowly walked further into the TARDIS, long since passing where the back wall should’ve been if the inside was the same size as the outside.</p><p>“Bigger…” She remarked. “On the inside.”</p><p>“Is it?” The Doctor asked somewhat sarcastically. “Funny what you miss after nine-hundred years. So!” He looked to the gold watch on his left wrist. “It’s dark out, and we still haven’t had anything to eat. What say we try to find our way to the kitchen?”</p><p>“But… Monster.” El stated.</p><p>“Don’t worry.” The Doctor told her, “I’ve set the TARDIS to scan the area. We’ll know more about it later.”</p><p>El nodded. “Food.”</p><p>------------</p><p>El, she decided, liked the TARDIS. It was all indoors, like the bad place, yes, but it was so <em>big. </em>She and the Doctor had been wandering together through the immense winding corridors of the spaceship for forty minutes, and they still hadn’t found the kitchen.</p><p>Somehow, despite the fact that the TARDIS was a maze like the bad place, it didn’t feel evil or oppressive. Quite the opposite, in fact. The TARDIS felt warm, welcoming, the metal of the corridors feeling warm like skin, and vibrating faintly like a heartbeat, and an invisible presence steered El and the Doctor along, almost like a mother guiding her child gently by the hand.</p><p>And that wasn’t even mentioning the rooms they’d passed by.</p><p>There was a large, multi-level library with an Olympic-sized swimming pool at the bottom, an observatory looking out into deep space despite the TARDIS being settled on Earth, a huge garden with red-colored grass, silver leaved trees, with a sky that looked to be forever locked at sunset, and-</p><p>“Arthur!” The Doctor beamed, running up to the white horse. “You’re okay!”</p><p>El stood, frozen, looking curiously at the animal square in the middle of the corridors.</p><p>“El, this is Arthur!” He introduced, rubbing the horse’s mane. “Arthur, meet El…” The Doctor glanced over to El. “I thought he got hurt during the crash.”</p><p>“What…” El slowly approached, wary. “What is he?”</p><p>The Doctor looked at her, hearts melting. “He’s a horse. People used to ride on them to get places.”</p><p>El stood, looking unsurely at the majestic animal.</p><p>“Don’t worry, he won’t bite you.” The Doctor gently told her. “Come on, say hello… He’s more scared of you than you’re scared of him.”</p><p>El took a shaky step, and following the Doctor’s example, reached up to stroke the horse’s mane.</p><p>“That’s it.” The Doctor whispered approvingly, trying not to startle either of them. “See? Told you he wouldn’t bite.”</p><p>Arthur whinnied.</p><p>“No, I didn’t kidnap her!” The Doctor stated. “She started following me around, and I haven’t been able to get rid of her!”</p><p>El tilted her head curiously.</p><p>The Doctor noticed her and glanced over. “I speak horse.”</p><p>Arthur blew a raspberry.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor pointed at the horse. “Shut up. Hey, now that I think about it, have you passed by the kitchen?”</p><p>Arthur neighed, standing on his hind legs.</p><p>“Really? Great!” The Doctor beamed. “Come along, El.” The Doctor gestured ahead. “It’s just down the corridor.”</p><p>The Doctor began moving again, and El followed, but not before offering the horse a little wave, as she caught up with the Time Lord.</p><p>--------------</p><p>By the time they did finally make it to the kitchen, the ‘wander around to find the kitchen’ plan turned into ‘give El a guided tour of the TARDIS,’ so that’s what they continued doing.</p><p>The two walked in to find little meals already prepared for both of them by the TARDIS, so they walked and ate at the same time.</p><p>“That’s the aircraft museum, I think.” The Doctor pointed to the door, taking down a bit of chicken.</p><p>“Air-craft?” El repeated.</p><p>“Yeah, like planes.” The Doctor answered. “They fly like birds but are big and metal. And that’s the train museum,” The Doctor pointed. “In there is the original Pere Marquette 1225.” He glanced to El, “The one at Michigan State is a replica.”</p><p>El blinked, none of those words meaning anything to her.</p><p>“Oh, and here is oxygen production.” The Doctor popped his head in.</p><p>Trees of the same kind the Doctor had in the garden extended far into the distance. A tower made of old, rusty metal poked out of the ground in the center of the room, and an artificial sky was projected on the surface of a dome covering the entire space.</p><p>El’s eyebrows furrowed. They’d been exploring for the past two hours, but it looked like they weren’t getting any closer to being finished. “How big?”</p><p>“Um, well…” The Doctor’s eyes flicked over to her, as he closed the door, continuing down the corridor. “Do you know what the word ‘infinite’ means?”</p><p>El shook her head, taking a bit out of her Eggo.</p><p>“Well, it’s basically endless.”</p><p>El looked amazed at that, as a yawn escaped her.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her and checked his watch.</p><p>His eyebrows shot up. <em>‘I’m surprised she managed to stay up for so long.’ </em>He turned to El. “Tired?”</p><p>El thinned her lips for a moment, before shaking her head.</p><p>“Really?” The Doctor teasingly asked. “Not even a little?”</p><p>El shook her head again.</p><p>“Did you have a bedtime?”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Bed time?”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. Whatever parents she had were total rubbish. “You know, tweet tweet time to sleep.” The Doctor said.</p><p>“Not tired.” El insisted.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “If you don’t get to bed soon, we can’t hunt down that monster in the morning. You want to help, right? I can’t have an assistant who’s too tired to stand on her feet.”</p><p>El paused for a moment, considering it, before nodding.</p><p>“Then finish that up,” The Doctor advised, “And we’ll get you set up in a room.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor gestured at the door. “Here we are. Your room.”</p><p>“…my room?” El repeated, looking at the door apprehensively.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor answered. “All yours.”</p><p>El took a step, the doors opening automatically, as she stepped inside. Her eyes widened, as she took in her room. It was big, bigger than her room at the bad place had been. Shaped like an elongated hexagon, the room was filled with various things El couldn’t guess the function of.</p><p>Comforting purple ambient light spilled in from the circular roundels on the walls, and El’s feet hit a thick, plush carpet.</p><p>El didn’t know why, but the room felt <em>right</em>.</p><p>“The TARDIS tailor-makes the rooms for her passengers.” The Doctor quietly explained. “You should find everything to your liking, if you don’t, she’ll fix it.” He looked up. “Isn’t that right, old girl?”</p><p>The lights pulsed happily in confirmation.</p><p>The Doctor inhaled. “Right, now, time for bed.” He instructed. “The results of those scans will come back, and then we’re gonna have a busy day tomorrow.”</p><p>El thinned her lips and nodded. “Thank you.”</p><p>“No need to thank me.” The Doctor replied. “Just doing what any decent humanoid would do.” He stated, moving towards the exit. He looked back in on her. “Sleep well.” He wished, finally stepping out, the doors sliding shut behind him.</p><p>El looked on at the door for a moment, before quietly slipping under the covers. Faintly, she thought she could hear a woman singing to her, as her eyes slowly drifted shut, and she entered dreamland.</p><p>--------------</p><p>The Doctor sighed, rubbing his face as he leaned over the console, looking at the progress of the scan.</p><p>The console beeped and whirred.</p><p>“No,” The Doctor insisted, “I didn’t kidnap her. I found her out in the woods and am preventing her from going back to a ridiculously abusive home.”</p><p>The TARDIS replied with a series of electronic chirps.</p><p>“How do I know!?” The Doctor incredulously repeated. “Good parents don’t tag their children, and then refer to them as a number!”</p><p>A bell on the console dinged.</p><p>“Of course I’m sure!” The Doctor stated, “The way she talks about her father… It goes way beyond a child being mad at their parent. She sounds genuinely terrified whenever the conversation starts approaching the topic of him. Something horrible’s been done to her, I know it.”</p><p>The TARDIS let out a low whine.</p><p>“Something bad enough that she’d rather hunt a monster with a complete stranger than go back.” The Doctor responded, almost growling. “But now that I’m here…” He pulled the monitor around to face him. “Maybe I can check the damage myself.” He flicked the switch on the underside, “Run a DNA scan, and cross-reference it to Earth’s databanks.”</p><p>The TARDIS buzzed.</p><p>“What do you mean ‘no-results?’” The Doctor demanded. “Even if she died before having a sample took the New Earth Genealogy Project would have it!”</p><p>The TARDIS buzzed again.</p><p>“Well, what about relatives?” The Doctor pressed.</p><p>The monitor flashed, before displaying the results.</p><p>“Okay, 50% match to Terry Ives. Finally, getting somewhere.” He grumbled. “What about her father?”</p><p>The TARDIS bleeped.</p><p>“No results!? Again!?” The Doctor incredulously repeated. “I may not be the sharpest tool when it comes to the old horizontal mambo, but even I know you have to have two parents to make a human!”</p><p>The TARDIS clicked.</p><p>The Doctor sarcastically laughed. “So, he doesn’t exist.” He sighed, rubbing his face, flopping down in one of the chairs near the console. “At least tell me you’ve got something about this ‘monster.’”</p><p>The console dinged, and the Doctor shot to his feet, running back to the monitor, pulling it around to face him.</p><p>“Well?” The Doctor prompted. “Get on with it!”</p><p>The monitor began to flash with the results of the TARDIS’s scan, and the Doctor could feel a growing sense of horror building up within him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. The Mad Man With a Box</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Neverweres.</p><p>For context, imagine this; You’re fighting a war. A war so big, so terrible, and so destructive, that time itself is not only the battlefield, but the weapon.</p><p>And in the middling days of the Last Great Time War, the Time Lords of Gallifrey had many, many creative uses for this weapon. One, was to reach into alternate timelines, the could’ve-have-beens of the universe, and pluck things from there.</p><p>That was what Neverweres were. ‘Creatures’ that shouldn’t exist, that can’t exist. Possibilities brought into reality by the Time Lords and unleashed onto the unsuspecting to ravage them.</p><p>That is what the monster in Hawkins, Indiana was. Not an alien, but a child of Earth. A lost cousin of humanity that was never born.</p><p>And yet, somehow, it was running around, causing kids to go missing, and popping out of walls.</p><p>But that wasn’t the most terrifying aspect of it. Because in the final days of the Last Great Time War, when the universe itself was stood poised on the edge of destruction, they’d all vanished. The war’s fast approaching end had caused the creatures (which existed outside of time) to return to non-existence long before the final battle. The alternate timelines they’d come from stamped out, totally destroyed. Even if one wanted to summon a Neverwere, it would be impossible to do so.</p><p>So, how was one here, now, in small-town America of all places?</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor sped down the street, renewed vigor in his step, as El followed. He was busy surveying the area with the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>Honestly, he didn’t know how he hadn’t noticed it before. Time in this town was <em>wrong. </em>Even though it should’ve only taken the TARDIS a couple of minutes to repair herself, at the most, it took the whole night. Then, there was time itself moving much faster than it should. At first, he thought it was because of the regeneration, but according to the calendars, he’d been there for three days, but by the Doctor’s own count, it was one at the very most.</p><p>Something in this town was wrong. Horribly wrong.</p><p>The sonic screwdriver’s buzzing became high-pitched, and the Doctor frowned. He glanced at the nearby tree, and promptly climbed up as far as he could.</p><p>His eyes narrowed, as they focused on a building far in the distance. That was the source, he was sure of it. His time senses were going haywire looking in that direction.</p><p>“That plus-shaped building in the woods.” The Doctor stated, looking down at El. “Know anything about it?”</p><p>El gulped. “…bad place.” She whispered, the Doctor quickly becoming concerned.</p><p>The Time Lord took a sharp breath, as he suddenly pieced it together. “You came from there, didn’t you?” He gently asked, climbing down.</p><p>El merely nodded.</p><p>The Doctor bent over to her level, scrutinizing her. “That building… It’s a lab, isn’t it? That’s why you have that tattoo. Eleven isn’t your name, it’s your designation… and you were in there for a long, long time.” <em>‘That explains the paleness, and the broken English, and the total lack of knowledge of the outside.’ </em>The Doctor bitterly thought to himself.</p><p>El, looking misty-eyed, nodded again.</p><p>“But why?” The Doctor wondered aloud. “Regulations on human testing were passed a long time ago. Why take a defenseless little girl, and use her as a test subject?” At least, that’s what he was assuming. There were no other reasons to take a child and lock them up in a laboratory.</p><p>El looked frightened, as the Doctor stared at her. El looked down to the Doctor’s hand, and the sonic screwdriver was slowly pulled out of his grasp.</p><p>“It doesn’t make any sense.” The Doctor mumbled.</p><p>El gulped and pointed. The Doctor frowned, as he noticed her other hand was free. His gaze followed the direction of where she was pointing, and the Time Lord gasped.</p><p>The sonic screwdriver was just floating there, in mid-air.</p><p>The Doctor whipped back to face El.</p><p>She wiped a stream of blood from her nostril.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor breathed, as the sonic screwdriver floated back into his hands, El looking fearful about what the Time Lord was going to do next. “I see.”</p><p>El gulped. “Not going back.”</p><p>“Hey,” The Doctor picked up on her fear immediately. “Nobody said anything of the sort. And you don’t have anything to worry about… Can you keep a secret?”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Secret?”</p><p>“Yeah. Something we only talk about between you and me. Something you don’t share with others.” The Doctor elaborated.</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>In response, the Doctor smiled, gently taking her hand, pressing it to his chest.</p><p>El’s eyebrows furrowed, before her eyes bugged out, staring at the Doctor. She may not have known a lot about the outside world, but she knew this wasn’t normal.</p><p>“Two… hearts?” El questioned.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled. “Yep. I’m an alien.”</p><p>“Alien?” El breathed.</p><p>The Doctor looked up, pointing to the sun. “You see the sun? There’re a billion, trillion, gazillion other stars just like it all across the universe, and around all those other suns, there are other worlds, just like this one.” He looked back down at her, into the girl’s eyes. “I’m from one of them. I’m called a Time Lord.”</p><p>El looked the Doctor up and down, amazed. “Spaceman?”</p><p>The Doctor let out a short laugh. “Yeah, so… I told you where I was from. Wanna go the other way around?”</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Doctor sat, listening intently, as El tried to tell the Time Lord as best she could about where she’d come from. Her English skills weren’t the best, full of stuttering, words that she tried to brute-force to mean something else, and placing emphasis on entirely the wrong syllables. But, eventually, the Doctor got the meaning of what she was trying to say.</p><p>And boy, did it make him <em>furious. </em>Still, El regaled him, either unaware or uncaring of the Doctor’s budding anger.</p><p>What the Doctor was able to piece together was this; El had been locked away in that laboratory for her entire life, ignorant of the outside world only until she absolutely had to know bits to assist in her ‘training.’ Even teaching her basic English was only to serve in the development of her espionage capabilities.</p><p>Oh, that’s right, in addition to having telekinesis, she could also spy on people and places with little more than a picture or an object they thought valuable.</p><p>That was why she was out in the woods during the storm when she’d found the Doctor. She’d been escaping from the lab, and the people in charge were tracking her down.</p><p>Still, the Doctor frowned. Even as the pieces fell into place, there were large gaps where something else should’ve been. And the Doctor knew exactly what it was.</p><p>“So,” The Doctor pressed, sitting across from her on a tree stump. “How does the monster fit into this?”</p><p>“Monster?” El repeated, swallowing.</p><p>“Your story doesn’t make sense.” The Doctor stated outright, leaning on his hand. “When I saw you out in the woods, you already knew what the monster was. But you couldn’t have encountered it just then, because you were running from the bad people.”</p><p>“…saw it.” El said.</p><p>“You did,” The Doctor granted, “But I need to know <em>where </em>you saw it.”</p><p>El remained silent.</p><p>“You know what I think?” The Doctor leaned forward slightly. “I think it had something to do with your escape, didn’t it?” He whispered, and El stiffened.</p><p>Caught, El simply nodded.</p><p>“Then what happened?” He gently pressed.</p><p>“I… found it.” El said. “Papa… wanted to talk to it.”</p><p>“He made you make contact.” The Doctor guessed. “And then, all hell broke loose.”</p><p>El, looking misty-eyed at her involvement in the events, nodded. “I’m sorry…”</p><p>The Doctor gently took her hand. “You don’t need to apologize.” He told her. “You’re just a kid. But this… papa of yours, he’s going to pay.” The Doctor resolved, looking at her. “There won’t be a safe place on this planet for him to hide. But first,” He held up a finger, “We deal with that monster, and rescue Will from whatever horrible situation he’s found himself in.”</p><p>El slowly nodded. “But… how?”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes flickered over to the concrete monolith in the distance. “I think it’s high time I check out that laboratory.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“The thing,” The Doctor grunted, as he pulled a storage chest out from underneath a panel in the console room, “About traveling through alternate timelines, is that it leaves a scar.” He explained to El, popping the lid open to root around inside, “Now, the monster’s world and Earth were separated, kept cut off from each other by a split second of time, unable to interact. It wasn’t aware you lot existed, and you lot weren’t aware either. Until something broke those barriers down.”</p><p>“Me.” El breathe, remembering her part in it.</p><p>“Yes, for better or worse.” The Doctor said, continuing on. “When you made contact with the monster, it tore open a hole in the universe, and then the monster was able to travel back and forth willy-nilly, all it liked. Until that original hole is sealed, it’s going to keep coming back and forth. Fortunately for us, we already know where the hole is.”</p><p>“The bad place.” El put together.</p><p>“Right you are!” The Doctor confirmed. “Closing it should be as easy as pie, but before we do that…” He took out a yellow, metal helmet, sitting it on the floor, as he pulled out an orange suit. “We have to rescue Will. Well, I do.”</p><p>“What is that?” El asked.</p><p>“Spacesuit.” The Doctor answered, effortlessly slipping into it with all his clothes still on. “Don’t know what the other side’s going to be like.” He explained, fastening the buckles.</p><p>El frowned, looking into the box. “Where’s mine?”</p><p>“You’re not going with me.” The Doctor told her.</p><p>El opened her mouth to protest.</p><p>“Those people kept you locked up in there your whole life.” He cut her off. “They’re not just going to forget about you because there’s a monster on the loose.”</p><p>“Handle them.” She said, crossing her arms.</p><p>“Hey,” The Doctor bent over to her level. “You want to help, I know… But I’d never be able to live with myself if a little girl got captured and experimented on.” He looked into her eyes, thinking for a moment, before he reached into the chest, and pulled out a pair of spectacles. He placed them on his head, and behind him, the porthole like screen near the door activated, showing El’s own face. Or rather, a live feed of the Doctor’s perspective. “I’ll wear these the whole time, you’ll be with me in spirit.”</p><p>“...don’t go.” El quietly begged.</p><p>“I have to.” The Doctor gently replied. “But I promise you, I will find Will, and after I do, I’ll come right back.” He smiled. “Trust me. I’m the Doctor.”</p><p>The Doctor fastened his helmet, and standing tall, walked over to the door. He stood there momentarily, looking at El. Offering the child one last smile, he opened the door, and stepped out, proceeding along his way.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. I Am The Doctor</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor glowered at the inanimate structure, as he marched down the road towards the Hawkins Laboratory. One would say he was being idiotic, walking straight up to a guarded government installation with little more than a sonic screwdriver and his wits.</p><p>But he <em>wanted </em>to get caught.</p><p>The Doctor didn’t count himself as a cruel man, but he wanted the humans in charge of the place to know they were in deep trouble before the authorities broke down their doors. Authorities that were already on the way, in fact.</p><p>The Doctor glared at the building, as he marched up to the gate. An MP (That’s Military Police, not Member of Parliament) was in the booth out in front of the gate, hand hovering over his gun as the Doctor approached.</p><p>“Howdy.” The Doctor greeted, as he walked up.</p><p>The MP looked the Doctor up and down suspiciously. “Can I help you?”</p><p>“Yes, in fact.” The Doctor turned, nodding at the building. “I need to get inside.”</p><p>“Sorry, sir, but the launchpad’s in Florida.” The MP retorted, trying to be funny, as he rebuked the Doctor.</p><p>“I don’t think you understand.” The Doctor stated, not in the mood for games. Oh, this new body was quite scary when dealing with the bad guys, wasn’t it? The Doctor reached down onto the harness, flashing the Psychic Paper.</p><p>The MP paled. “S-Sorry, sir.” He apologized, hitting the button to allow the Doctor access. “Right this way.”</p><p>“Thanks.” The Doctor offered, continuing to walk along. “And send word to your boss!” He ordered, not looking back. “I want to talk to him…” He growled, walking up to the front entrance like he owned the place.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The boots of the Doctor’s spacesuit thudded against the tile, the Time Lord turning heads as he proceeded into the building. A couple of the soldiers inside glared at him, trying to intimidate him. The Doctor glared right back, every one of them shrinking in fear at the outwardly meek man.</p><p>Before long, the Doctor was faced with the head of the facility. Martin Brenner.</p><p>Even as far away from her as she was, the Doctor could feel El stiffen.</p><p>“Excuse me, hello.” Brenner held out a hand to shake. The Doctor ignored it. “Forgive me, but we weren’t expecting a visit.”</p><p>“I need to see it.” The Doctor stated.</p><p>Brenner looked confused for a moment. Just a moment, before the mask slipped back on. “See what?”</p><p>“You know what.” The Doctor growled.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I wasn’t aware UNIT had become aware of the situation.” Brenner remarked, he and his men leading the Doctor through the hallways of the Laboratory.</p><p>“UNIT has eyes everywhere.” The Doctor responded. That much was true. For better or for worse, the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce kept tabs on every country on the planet. When one of them got too far into tampering with anything extraterrestrial, UNIT swiftly came in to control the situation. And since the US had been a signatory of the UNIT charter, they too were bound by it. “You made a mistake.”</p><p>Brenner tilted his head, hindered slightly by his hazmat suit, as the Doctor was led through the lower levels of the building. “A mistake?”</p><p>“You messed with forces beyond your comprehension.” The Doctor bitterly stated, as they came into an observation room. “And now, someone’s going to have to clean up your mess.” He clenched his fist, as he looked at the huge, pulsating hole in the wall. It looked organic, a mucus-like substance covering the entrance.</p><p>Just looking at the thing messed with the Doctor’s senses in all the worst ways. He counted the humans lucky, in that regard. They were so primitive they didn’t have the capacity to be put off by it.</p><p>“I’m going inside.” The Doctor proclaimed, pushing away his discomfort, beginning to walk forward.</p><p>“Hold on, you can’t-!” Another scientist tried to intervene.</p><p>Brenner held up his hand, looking at the Doctor all the while. “If he wishes to volunteer… so be it.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at Brenner, staring at the man, before turning to the rift, pushing his way through.</p><p>------------</p><p>El looked at the TARDIS’s screen in curiosity, yet also revulsion, as the Doctor pushed through the rift in the lab.</p><p>On the other side was an exact mirror of everything, covered with dark, fleshy vines. As the Doctor got to the surface, however, things proved to be worse. Everything, from the trees to the grass was dead and decaying, covered in a black, blood-like substance.</p><p>El tried to keep her breathing steady. The whole place looked about ready to kill.</p><p>A warm gust of air brushed around her, and El could feel the TARDIS gently brush against her mind.</p><p>Everything was going to be alright, she just had to wait.</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Doctor fought to control his breathing as he walked down the gore-covered streets of the alternate Earth. Something horrible had happened here. He would’ve been inclined to stop and explore, try and even piece together what went down, but he had to find Will, fast.</p><p>The environment was reading toxic.</p><p>“I imagine if Tumblr was an actual environment people can walk around in, it’s something like this.” The Doctor remarked aloud, before remembering that even if El understood the joke, she couldn’t respond, and he sighed.</p><p>The sonic screwdriver in his hands buzzed as he set it to lock on to the nearest human life-signs.</p><p>Something far in the distance roared, and the Doctor grimaced, as a spike of pain drove into his head. A portal had been opened.</p><p>The Doctor broke out into a sprint, directly towards Will’s life-sign.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Even distance in the alternate Hawkins wasn’t strictly linear. The Doctor had been running, and though on the actual Earth it would’ve taken him at least fifteen minutes to get where he was going, from the time the Doctor heard the screech and felt the portal forming, to the time he’d gotten to Will, only a minute had passed.</p><p>The Time Lord could hear banging as he ran up to the house.</p><p>“Mom!” The Byers boy screamed, banging on the wall. He looked to his left, not noticing the Doctor’s approach, but hearing the growl of the same monster that had took him. “Mom, it’s coming!”</p><p>“Ah, hello!” The Doctor shouted, Will whipping around. The Time Lord held up his hands, “Don’t worry, don’t worry, I’m friendly!” The Time Lord’s eyes locked on the fleshy aperture forming in the wall. “Ah, looks like that crack’s been widened. Hello Joyce!” He greeted the woman on the other side. “Told you I’d find your son!”</p><p>“Where are you!?” Joyce shouted, trying to bang on the wall.</p><p>“Alternate hellworld version of Hawkins, long story!” The Doctor looked the hole up and down. The edges seemed to be growing back. “That’s not ideal…”</p><p>“What!?” Joyce shouted, “What!?”</p><p>“Hurry up!” Will screeched. “It’s coming!”</p><p>“The forces are beginning to invert!” The Doctor pointed the sonic screwdriver at the tear. “I can invert the forces back, hold it open long enough to get someone through! Will,” He turned to the child, “Ready to go home?”</p><p>The monster roared, and Will began nodding vehemently.</p><p>“Right, it’ll only stay open long enough to get one person through before it snaps itself shut. Stand here.” The Doctor ordered, placing Will directly in front of the aperture. “And brace yourself for a fall.”</p><p>“What?” Will fearfully questioned, as the Doctor pressed down the button on the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>The rip in the wall stopped closing, opening wider ever-so-slightly, as the pink, flesh-like barrier visibly grew weaker. The monster roared as it came charging in towards the woods, and the Doctor shoved Will through, the portal snapping shut completely a moment later, as the monster lunged for the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor ducked, one of the monster’s clawed hands embedding itself into the wall. The Doctor shot one last glance at it, and took off running, back the way he had come.</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Doctor’s boots thumped against the ground as he ran back towards the mirrored version of the lab, feet carrying the Time Lord as fast as they could. The wind was kicking up now, red lightning sparking in the sky.</p><p>He’d made a mistake. A big boo-boo. A massive tactical error, so to speak. The monster hadn’t been the only inhabitant of what the Doctor had suddenly decided to term ‘Hell Earth.’ No, there was a much bigger, much more sinister thing that called this place home.</p><p>And, either reacting to the Doctor’s mental presence, or his interfering with the littler monster, the Time Lord had somehow caught it’s attention, and it was making a beeline straight from wherever it had been before, to the portal in the alternate lab.</p><p>Running through the corridors of the alternate lab, walls of shadow were tearing their way through the place, all in pursuit of the Doctor, as he sprinted towards the tear.</p><p>As he jumped into it, and as the shadow beast followed, the Doctor felt like a right git.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The first thing that greeted the Doctor on the other side was screaming, and gunfire. None of it directed at him, thankfully. The local UNIT contingent (The Doctor had to call the Brigadier back in good old England, and he had to call in so many favors it was ridiculous) had arrived on-scene to arrest the people of the lab for breaking the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as it pertained to El, and for punching holes in space-time without the proper precautions. What? You thought UNIT was just alien hunters? Well, they <em>were</em> mainly alien hunters, but they were also the attack dogs. A tiny little military sent in when no one nation would be able to. And being the whole organization’s Chief Scientific Advisor had its perks.</p><p>But now, the UNIT soldiers of the American contingent had found themselves in ground zero of an alien invasion hub. Bullets flew like hail, dark tendrils retaliating by piercing the soldiers. Brenner had already been arrested, it seemed.</p><p>Good. That meant the Doctor would get to see the look on his face when Brenner was thrown in the UNIT supermax for the rest of time.</p><p>Eventually, the shadow evidently grew bored of the human soldiers in the lab, escaping via the vents of the building. It was going outside, it seemed.</p><p>Very well, the Doctor could do that, too.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor shrugged off the impractical spacesuit on his way up to the roof. He needed to own the stage, and the Doctor couldn’t do that while looking like a colorful astronaut.</p><p>…never mind the fact that his ‘normal’ clothes made him look like a young college professor, at best.</p><p>Still, the Doctor pressed forward, towards the roof. The beast wouldn’t get its non-corporeal tentacles on Earth, not today.</p><p>But the Doctor needed to give it a chance to surrender first. That way, whatever fate befell it… the Doctor could rest at least somewhat easy.</p><p>The Time Lord stared up, at the colossal tornado-like entity blotting out the sun.</p><p>“Oi, you!” The Doctor yelled, trying to be as loud as possible. “According to Convention 15 of the Shadow Proclamation, I demand an audience!”</p><p>The tornado stopped spinning, as it formed into a spider-like body, a single massive head at one end. The Doctor felt it probe his mind, and he dropped his defenses, only slightly.</p><p>“Well, come on then!” The Doctor called, throwing his arms out. “The Doctor will see you now!”</p><p>The shadow growled, bringing its ‘head’ down to the Doctor’s level. Momentarily, the Time Lord could feel it try to probe deeper.</p><p><em>“You…” </em>The Shadow growled. <em>“Are not of this world.”</em></p><p>“No.” The Doctor admitted. “But I’ve put a lot of work into it.” The Doctor looked down at his wrist, to the watch face looking back up at him.<em> ‘I wonder how long this is going to take. I promised El I’d be back soon.’</em> “I dunno,” He posed aloud to the shadow, “What do you think?”</p><p><em>“This world will be food.”</em> The Shadow proclaimed.</p><p>“Food?” The Doctor huffed. “This is a fully-established, level five planet. And you’re going to try and eat it? Don’t make me laugh. All that carbon dioxide alone’s going to give you horrible indigestion.”</p><p><em>“Is this world important?” </em>The Shadow questioned.</p><p>“Important!?” The Doctor repeated incredulously. “What’s that mean ‘important?’ Six <em>billion </em>people live here-is <em>that</em> important!?” The Time Lord shook his head. He felt the shadow trying to probe deeper into his mind again and sighed. “Here’s a better question; is this world a threat to your being? Well, come on, I’m giving you everything I have in here about the Earth. Is this world a threat?”</p><p>Images of humanity’s countless weapons flashed in the Doctor’s mind.</p><p><em>“No.”</em> The Shadow stated.</p><p>“Are the peoples of this world guilty of any crimes by the laws of your people, whatever they may be?”</p><p>A different set of images, the human race’s countless wars against themselves, again flashed.</p><p><em>“No.”</em> The Shadow repeated.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor nodded, satisfied. “One more question, just one;”</p><p>The Shadow bristled.</p><p>“Is this world <em>protected</em>?” The Doctor questioned. He dropped the defenses around his mind just a little bit more, letting a small about of information leak to the shadow. Information about the Doctor. “Cause, you’re not the first lot to have come here, oh there have been <em>so </em>many.” The Doctor regaled it, as images of the Daleks filling the skies of London, Cybermen smashing their way into defenseless homes, Sea Devils rising out of the oceans, the Racnoss Queen snarling as her ship attacked, and so many more filled the mind of the Doctor, and by extension, the shadow.</p><p>“Now, what <em>you’ve </em>got to ask is; what happened to <em>them?”</em> The Doctor posited, as a new series of images began crossing his mind, images of different men from all across the ages, and he began to count.<em> ‘I give it ten seconds before it realizes just who its dealing with.</em></p><p>
  <em>One.’</em>
</p><p>A long, white-haired elderly gentleman holding a cane…</p><p>
  <em>‘Two.’</em>
</p><p>…a cosmic hobo wearing an almost comically large bow tie and sporting a Beatles haircut…</p><p>
  <em>‘Three.’</em>
</p><p>…a dapper, dashing older man with curly silver hair in a velvet suit, fighting his enemies with a long-lost martial art…</p><p>
  <em>‘Four.’</em>
</p><p>…a rather bohemian fellow, with a scarf too long to be practical, and a giant set of teeth…</p><p>
  <em>‘Five.’</em>
</p><p>…a younger man, wearing an Edwardian-style cricketing uniform, a stick of celery affixed to one lapel…</p><p>
  <em>‘Six.’</em>
</p><p>…an abrasive, curly-haired blonde, wearing a multicolored patchwork coat…</p><p>
  <em>‘Seven.’</em>
</p><p>…a shorter man holding an umbrella with a question-mark handle, looking harmless to everyone, but his eyes speaking of ancient wisdom and machinations…</p><p>
  <em>‘Eight.’</em>
</p><p>…a handsome man with long brown, almost auburn hair, wearing stolen, fancy Edwardian dress…</p><p>
  <em>‘Nine.’</em>
</p><p>…a short-haired man, wearing a leather jacket and a green jumper, as he looked on at something in the distance…</p><p>
  <em>‘Ten.’</em>
</p><p>…and a spiky-haired man in a brown pinstriped suit, a swirly-patterned tie around his neck, as he stared on, unmoving.</p><p><em>‘…Eleven.’ </em>The Doctor finished. “Hello.” He said aloud to the Shadow, feeling the entity’s sheer, uncontrollable terror upon realizing just who it had unwittingly decided to mess with registered in its mind. “I’m the Doctor.” He smiled slightly. “Basically…” The smile dropped, and the Doctor stood there, glaring at the shadow. <em>“Run.”</em></p><p>Red lightning sparked, as the tiny motes of dust that made up the shadow’s ‘body’ all shot up at once, twisting and churning like a tornado, as the shadow scrambled to get away from Earth, into space as fast as it could.</p><p>And during all of this, the Doctor looked on, satisfied, as his favorite planet was once again safe.</p><p>
  <em>‘One second off. Oh, well, we can’t all be perfect.’</em>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The Eleventh Hour</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Walking back down through the Hawkins lab, seeing all of the horrible excuses for ‘scientists’ being handcuffed and forced out of the building by the UNIT troops… it was satisfying to the Doctor on a deep, personal level.</p><p>You didn’t mess with children. And certainly not with the Doctor close enough to punish you.</p><p>The Time Lord swaggered effortlessly through the lab, getting awed looks from the UNIT personnel sweeping the place. He was well aware he was a legend to some of them, no matter how much he didn’t like it. But, being a legend did have its perks.</p><p>The Doctor smiled, sauntering out of the lab to the front lot, the UNIT transports parked patiently as the people who ran the lab were forced into the backs. The US government, for the first time and a very long time the Doctor reckoned, was going to have something to answer for.</p><p>He could’ve left well enough alone then and there… but, then he caught sight of Brenner, and the Doctor just had to rub it in.</p><p>“Brenner.” The Doctor addressed. He wasn’t going to address any of these people by the title ‘doctor.’ As far as he was concerned, they’d lost that right upon experimenting on a child. “Sitting comfortably? I hope so. That’s going to be the last comfy chair you sit in for a very, very long time.”</p><p>Brenner glowered at the Doctor, unable to sic his goons on the Time Lord, or fight the alien himself. “Why are you doing this? What did we do to you?”</p><p>“To me?” The Doctor shrugged. “Nothing. But I did find a little girl in the forest with a very special ability.”</p><p>“Eleven.” Brenner breathed. “You found her?”</p><p>“From a certain perspective.”</p><p>“Where is she?” Brenner inquired. “I need to know that she is… safe.”</p><p>“Safe.” The Doctor repeated, huffing. “I find it very hard to believe you’re inquiring that because you’re worried about her wellbeing. Let me put it in terms you can understand:” The Doctor growled, practically getting into the man’s face. “She is somewhere where you, or your goon squad, can’t ever find her.”</p><p>“That girl… belongs to us.” Brenner replied. “Government property. Think about what you are doing.” He tried to threaten.</p><p>“A <em>child,” </em>The Doctor roared, short fuse at its end. “<em>IS NOT PROPERTY</em>!” He seethed, trying to get himself back under control. “If your <em>government </em>has anything to say about it… they’re going to have to deal with me.”</p><p>Brenner tilted his head. “You would make yourself an enemy of an entire country?”</p><p>“I’ve made myself an enemy of entire species.” The Doctor hissed. “If your government thinks they can take <em>me </em>on… they haven’t got the first iota of a clue of who they’re dealing with.” The Doctor, unable to face Brenner any longer because he feared he would get physical with the American, pivoted on his heel, marching away. “I hope you made your peace with her the last time you spoke!” The Doctor taunted as he walked away. “Because you won’t ever get to see her again.” The Time Lord vowed, disappearing back into the woods.</p><p>Brenner looked on, as one of the UNIT soldiers shut the door to the transport, and banged against the side twice, all prisoners from the lab accounted for. The convoy began to move, and the lab was left behind, leaving it solely in control of UNIT.</p><p>----------</p><p>The doors to the TARDIS creaked shut behind the Doctor, and in an instant, a little blur was running into him, nearly knocking him to the floor.</p><p>“Whoa, whoa!” The Doctor staggered, as El clung onto him. “What’s this about, eh?”</p><p>El pulled back from him, and scowled, hitting him on the chest. “Stupid.”</p><p>“Stupid, I’m not-“ The Doctor sputtered, being cut off by a mechanical chime from the TARDIS. “Oh… shut up!” The first thing he did was stow his spacesuit and the camera specs back in the chest, before marching up to the console. “So, any word on Will?” He asked, pivoting the monitor over to see.</p><p>“Safe.” El stated. “Home.”</p><p>“Oh, have you been watching him? Did you find that yourself, or did the old girl do it for you?” The Doctor asked, seeing a feed from the monitor. Joyce was doting over her son, latched onto him even as he was taken through a hospital to be checked out. “And the monster…” He typed a series of commands into the keyboard, smiling as the results came back. “On the other side. Then, there’s no time to waste. Let’s get this portal closed.” He flicked a few switches on a panel, and the screen changed to show a head-on view of the rift in the Hawkins lab. The fissure pulsed uncertainly, shrinking and stitching itself back together, the flesh-like growths around it decaying into nothing.</p><p>El tilted her head as she looked at the screen. “Gone.”</p><p>“Like it was never even there.” The Doctor confirmed, turning back to her. “Were you okay in here, all by yourself?”</p><p>El thought about it for a moment, before nodding. “Yes.”</p><p>“Good.” The Doctor smiled. A moment passed, before he sighed and swallowed. “You saw me talking to him, didn’t you?”</p><p>“…saw everything.” El confirmed.</p><p>“Are you going to be okay?” He asked. “He may have been a monstrous man… but he was the only one you had.”</p><p>“…okay.” El told the Doctor.</p><p>“Alrighty, then.” The Doctor inhaled, turning to the console. “Right, now…” He glanced at her. “The people in the lab are all gone.”</p><p>“…no more bad men?”</p><p>“No more bad men.” The Doctor gladly confirmed. “But that does leave me with a choice to make. I can find you a home, here, on Earth, with a nice, caring family who’ll keep you safe.” Lethbridge-Stewart might be resistant, at first, but the man really was a bit of a softie when he warmed up.</p><p>El tilted her head. “Home?”</p><p>“Yeah, with a mummy and a daddy who’ll do things good parents should do.” The Doctor explained. “Maybe even a brother or a sister.” He could always leave El with Sarah Jane. She did have a habit of taking children under her wing.</p><p>“…or?” El questioned.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Or what?”</p><p>“Said choice.” El recalled. “Means two options.”</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor laughed slightly. Perceptive kid, that one. “Or…” He swallowed, bracing himself for the coming rejection. “You could… come with me.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Where?”</p><p>“Everywhere.” The Doctor answered. “The TARDIS can go anywhere in the universe. And she can go anywhen in time.” He explained.</p><p>El slowly approached the Doctor, examining him.</p><p>“It’s fine if you don’t.” The Doctor quietly told her. “You’re just a kid… The universe is a bit big for a child.”</p><p>El looked up at the Doctor, thinning her lips. “Stay.” She decided.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, turning around. “Well, guess I’d better give old Alistair a call, let him know he has incoming.”</p><p>“Stay.”</p><p>The Doctor froze, slowly turning around. “What’d you say?”</p><p>“Stay.” El repeated one final time.</p><p>The Doctor looked hopeful. “You want to stay?”</p><p>“Yes.” El confirmed.</p><p>The Time Lord’s face broke out into an ebullient grin. “Ha ha! Well, old girl,” He addressed the TARDIS, “Guess you’d better bring the kids clothes out of the wardrobe and get the place childproof!” He dashed around the console like a caffeinated squirrel, throwing levers, ringing the bell, flicking a few switches. “Now then, brand new TARDIS, you know the best thing to break it in!?”</p><p>El tilted her head curiously.</p><p>“A trip.” The Doctor waggled his eyebrows adventurously. “Shall we be off?” He pulled back a red lever, the entire ship thudding, as he moved over to the throttle. He beckoned El over and placed her hand on the throttle. “Ready?”</p><p>El smiled and nodded.</p><p>“Right then! Goodbye, Planet Earth, hello…” He looked the girl dead in the eye. <em>“Everything.”</em></p><p>The Doctor pulled the throttle back, and the TARDIS began to shake. Little ammeters in the console went wild, as the blown-glass pillar in the center of the control console began rising and falling with the most melodic scraping noise El had ever heard. A flip clock set into one of the panels began flipping through every last one of its numbers and thunder clapped as the TARDIS slammed through the time barrier.</p><p>During all of this, the Doctor whooped and laughed, El following his example after a moment, as he piloted the ship towards its next destination:</p><p>Adventure.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The Starship UK</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So, the one thing the Doctor could say about human children: they were much, <em>much </em>different than Gallifreyan children.</p><p>Gallifreyan children were content to sit down, to listen, to do what you asked. Human children, on the other hand, were a handful in themselves. He’d thought it was a quirk of the adults, being stubborn and unwilling to listen or somesuch, but no, that extended to the young as well.</p><p>Here’s the full story; El’s first trip in the TARDIS had seen them wind up in deep space. The Doctor and El stood at the door of the TARDIS, watching the vast, infinite majesty of the universe, billions of stars twinkling in space, against the bright blue backdrop of a nearby nebula.</p><p>And then, that’s when the ship had come. A vast, metal construct, shaped almost like a metal turtle carrying a city on its back.</p><p>But something about the ship was <em>wrong. </em>The Doctor could feel it. There was a very strong, very oppressive feeling of… sadness? Torment? Emanating from the ship.</p><p>El’s breath caught, as she looked at the ship as well, catching the Doctor’s attention.</p><p>“You feel it too?” The Time Lord asked.</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>The Doctor stared at the ship, frowning. “The Starship UK!” He suddenly began, closing the doors as he walked back over to the console. “Late 29<sup>th</sup> century, solar flares overwhelm the Earth’s magnetosphere, and the planet gets cooked! So, what to the people do?”</p><p>“Doctor?” El meekly called, still over by the door.</p><p>“All humanity packs its bags and moves out until the weather improves!” The Doctor answered, excitedly hitting an air pump on the console. “Whole nations--migrating to the stars!”</p><p>“Doctor.”</p><p>“Isn’t that amazing?” He asked, hitting a few keys on the typewriter.</p><p>“Doctor!” El called.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, as he looked over to the closed doors. He quickly sprinted over, and pulled them open, El hanging on to the outside of the TARDIS by the police box signage.</p><p>“Well, come on.” The Doctor guided, gently pulling her back inside. “Found us a spaceship.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“That, is the United Kingdom of Britain--and Northern Ireland, all of it.” The Doctor explained, as a better image of the enormous spaceship floated by on the scanner. “Bolted together, flying across the stars.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “City.” She hadn’t seen any in person, but she’d seen enough pictures back in the lab to know what they were.</p><p>“It’s a whole country.” The Doctor corrected, “W-Well, not just a country,” He corrected himself, “It’s an <em>idea.</em> The idea of survival against impossible odds. I mean, look at that… Your species has just only crawled out of the primordial soup, in the grand scheme of things. You’ve survived cosmic wars, and holocausts… and now, you’re carving out a new existence for yourselves amongst the stars.” The Doctor smiled proudly, like a parent watching their child graduate. “Indomitable.”</p><p>The Doctor’s excitement was contagious, and El found herself beaming as well. “Can we see?” The girl asked.</p><p>“Course we can-“ The Doctor lightly tapped El on the nose, turning to walk back over to the console. “But first, there’s a thing.”</p><p>El cocked her head. “A thing?” She repeated.</p><p>“Yes, a very important thing.” The Doctor told her, “In fact, thing one:“ He suddenly produced a magnifying glass from somewhere, El not being able to see exactly where from, and held it up to his eye. “We are observers only. That’s the one rule I’ve stuck to, no matter what, in all my travels,” He turned to her seriously, dropping the magnifying glass, “I never get involved in the affairs of other people or planets- ooh,” He turned to the monitor on the console. “That’s interesting…” He muttered, zooming in as the feed showed a little girl, around El’s age, sitting on a park bench, crying her eyes out.</p><p>El looked at the screen, frowning. Nobody was helping her. That girl was sitting there, very obviously very sad, and nobody was trying to do anything about it…</p><p>Just like the lab.</p><p>The Doctor suddenly appeared on the screen, asking the little girl what was wrong, and El gasped. The girl got up from the bench and ran from the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord looked up, to where he knew the feed was observing from, and beckoned El to follow.</p><p>The girl giggled, running over to the doors, throwing them open, as she stepped out.</p><p>El yelped, as a bicycle cart narrowly brushed past the front of the blue box, and the door clicked shut, the girl slowly moving forward.</p><p><em>“Welcome to London Market.” </em>A lady’s voice announced over a loudspeaker. <em>“You are being monitored.”</em></p><p>El looked around in wonder. The whole place was very densely populated, with people going about their days without a care in the world. Everything looked grimy, dirty… lived in.</p><p>El breathed, looking up at the curved glass skylight, offering a view out into space, as she rejoined the Doctor’s side.</p><p>“Look at this place,” The Doctor prompted, moving along, ushering El alongside. “Isn’t it just wrong?”</p><p>“Wrong?” El repeated.</p><p>“Come on, look at it.” The Doctor instructed, gesturing around. “Use your eyes, notice everything. What’s wrong with this picture?”</p><p>El frowned, looking around, as another bicycle cart passed by. Cars made smoke, and smoke was hard to breathe, bad in a closed space, so it couldn’t be the bicycles.</p><p>“Life on a giant spaceship, back to basics.” The Doctor regaled, moving on. “Bicycles, washing lines, wind-up streetlamps… But look closer. Secrets, shadows, lives led in fear. Society bent out of shape, on the <em>brink </em>of collapse…” He whispered, pulling El along. “A police state. Excuse me.” He suddenly ran over to a table, a couple dining on it, taking one of the glasses of water from them.</p><p>“What are you doing?” The man demanded, looking the Doctor up and down, as the Time Lord set the glass on the floor.</p><p>The Doctor didn’t reply, watching as the water went still, frowning. He suddenly smiled, looking back to the two men. “Sorry, just checking the water in this area.” He explained, sitting the glass back where he got it. “There’s an escaped fish.” He tapped his forehead, pointing at the two of them, before moving back along, pulling El behind. “Where was I?” He mumbled, looking around.</p><p>“What was that?” El curiously asked.</p><p>“Don’t know.” The Doctor answered, coming to a stop. “I think a lot, it’s hard to keep track. Now… police state,” He snapped his fingers, pointing at her, “Do you see it?”</p><p>“Where?” El asked, looking around.</p><p>“There.” The Doctor snapped again, pointing at the far end of the market.</p><p>The little girl from before was sat down on a red metal bench, crying, sniffling. The Doctor shot one last glance at El, and began walking in that direction, El following along.</p><p>The Doctor suddenly sat down on a bench, a little closer, but still far enough away for them not to be spotted.</p><p>“Sad.” El recognized, sitting next to the Doctor, as the Time Lord watched.</p><p>“Crying silently…” The Doctor muttered. He turned to El. “I mean, children cry, they cry because they want attention.” He told her quietly. “But when they cry silently… it’s because they just can’t stop.” He sniffed. “Any parent knows that.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Parent?”</p><p>“Yeah, mums, dads, mamas, papas. No, not papas, forget papas.” The Doctor rambled.</p><p>“You… a parent?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El for a moment, remaining silent, before quickly glancing away. “Hundreds of parents walking past this spot, and not one of them stopping to ask what’s wrong, which means…” He turned back to El. “You were in that lab. What did it mean when you were crying but nobody stopped to ask what the problem was?”</p><p>“They knew.” She answered.</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “They already know what the problem is…” The Doctor turned back. “But they’re too afraid to do anything about it. Shadows, whatever it is they’re afraid of, it can’t be seen. Or…” His eyes focused on the marionette-like statue in a booth on one wall of the marketplace. “It’s everywhere. Police state.”</p><p>The girl suddenly got up, and vanished into a moving crowd, as the Doctor twiddled his thumbs, staring at the smiling statue.</p><p>It was looking back, that much he knew.</p><p>“Where’d she go?” El asked looking into the crowd.</p><p>“Deck 207.” The Doctor answered. “Apple Sesame block, Dwelling 54A. You’re looking for Mandy Tanner.”</p><p>El’s head shot over to the Doctor.</p><p>“Oh,” He reached into his jacket, pulling out a tiny wallet. “This fell when I bumped into her. Took me four goes.” He handed the wallet over to El. “Ask her about those things, the smiling fellas in the booths, they’re everywhere.”</p><p>“But…”</p><p>“They’re clean.” The Doctor elaborated. “Everything else on this ship is used, almost abused. So, why is there a two-feet zone around them that’s absolutely spic and span? Ask Mandy; ‘Why are people scared of the things in the booths?’” He prompted.</p><p>“No.” El replied. “Stay with you.” She determinedly poked the Doctor’s arm.</p><p>“I know you want to,” The Doctor empathetically said, “But she might not talk if she sees me with you. There’s something going on here. Right underneath our feet.” He turned to her seriously. “I asked you if you really wanted to come with me, you said yes. This is what my life is. I find the problem, and I fix it. Because no one else will.”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor a moment, before nodding.</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Right, I’ll meet you back here in half an hour,” He looked down at his watch, “Don’t worry about reading the signs, the TARDIS’s translation circuits can make sure you’ll understand them regardless.”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor. “And you?”</p><p>“I’ll do what I always do.” He crossed his arms. “Stay out of trouble.” He got to his feet, spinning around. “Badly.” He amended, before jumping over the bench, running off to wherever his brain was leading him to.</p><p>El stood up herself, watching as the Doctor left. So, he didn’t interfere with the affairs of other peoples or planets… unless he saw a child crying.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El walked through the depths of the Starship UK, metal creaking slightly as steam emanated from one of the vents. The little girl fiddled with the wallet in her hands, as she turned the corner.</p><p>“You’re following me.” A voice accused, causing El to jump in surprise, whipping around. “Saw you watching me at the marketplace.” Mandy stated, glaring at El.</p><p>El shyly held out the wallet. “…dropped this.”</p><p>“Yeah,” Mandy snatched it up, “When your dad kept bumping into me.”</p><p>El watched, as Mandy started marching down the street, and followed, observing the ruined look of everything in the corridor.</p><p>El cocked her head, as Mandy stopped in front of a yellow barrier, grunting in frustration.</p><p>“What’s that?” El asked, observing a workman’s tent just past the barrier.</p><p>“There’s a hole.” Mandy replied. “Have to find another way around.”</p><p>“Hole?” El repeated. Like the holes in Hawkins? She walked forward a little.</p><p>“Are you stupid?” Mandy asked. “There’s a hole in the road, we can’t go that way.” She said, as El pushed through the barriers, intent on entering the tent. “There’s a travel pipe down by the airlocks, if you’ve got stamps. What are you doing?” She inquired, as El pushed through.</p><p>“Looking.” El answered, turning around. She turned back, to the lock holding the tent closed.</p><p>“…You sound American.” Mandy remarked, as El tried to focus her mind on the lock.</p><p>“American.” El repeated by way of an answer, as the lock suddenly broke open. She wiped her nose, and pulled the tent flap open. “Coming?”</p><p>“No!” Mandy responded like it was obvious.</p><p>El shrugged and pushed her way into the tent.</p><p>“Stop!” Mandy called. “You mustn’t do that!”</p><p>El crawled in, looking around at the inside, and breathed. What looked like a giant, bioluminescent tentacle had ripped through the floor. The lights flickered, bathing the tendril in an otherworldly glow, as El tried to get a closer look.</p><p>The tentacle screeched, striking the ground with a spike. El recoiled slightly, but frowned, as it hit way off the mark.</p><p>El came scrambling out of the tent again, heaving. The thing… El didn’t feel like whatever it was wanted to hurt her. Quite the opposite, in fact. It was scared… terrified of something.</p><p>El froze, looking up as four people stood over her, in black, hooded cloaks. She tried to throw a hand out to push them away, but they were faster on the uptick, and one’s hand shot out, a ring on his hand pelting El with a blast of gas.</p><p>The world went fuzzy, and she fell unconscious.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. The Beast Below</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor jumped down from the ladder, landing in a hallway deep within the starship. Electrical boxes lined the wall behind him, and steam pipes hissed faintly further down the corridor.</p><p>The Doctor bit the inside of his cheek as he felt the wall, pressing an ear to it.</p><p>The Time Lord’s eyes widened. “Can’t be…” He muttered, pushing off the wall, scanning it with the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>He flicked the device open, claws at the top flaring out, and looked into the core at the readouts.</p><p>He frowned, getting down on his chest, staring at a perfectly still glass of water.</p><p>Footsteps gently clicked against the floor, as somebody approached.</p><p>“The impossible truth, hidden inside a glass of water.” The Doctor’s head shot up, to a woman. “Not many people see it.</p><p><em>‘Human, female, thirty or forty years of age, predominantly African in descent… Nice mask, though.’ </em>The Doctor noted to himself, shooting to his feet.</p><p>“But you do, don’t you… Doctor.” The woman sneered at him behind the unmoving porcelain mask, the Doctor looking her up and down.</p><p>“You know me?” The Doctor asked, eyes narrowing as he walked around her.</p><p>“Keep your voice down.” The woman hissed. “They’re everywhere. Tell me what you see in the glass.”</p><p>“Who says I see anything?” The Doctor defensively asked in response.</p><p>“Don’t waste time.” The woman shot back. “In the marketplace, you placed a glass of water on the floor, looked at it, then came here to the engine room. Why?”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled inaudibly. This woman was perceptive. “No engine vibration on deck.” He decided to answer. “Ship this size, engine this big, there’d ought to be something. The water would move. So, I thought I’d take a look.” The Doctor turned away, walking over to one of the junction boxes. “It doesn’t make sense!” He stated, pulling one of the boxes open. “These power couplings,” He pulled the tubes out for the woman to see them, free of any wires or circuitry, “They’re not connected to anything! Not a single one. They’re dummies.” He ran over to the other wall, knocking on it. “And behind this wall; nothing. It’s hollow. If I didn’t know better, I’d say there’s no engine at all.”</p><p>“No engine at all.” The woman said precisely in sync with the Time Lord.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyebrows knit together, eyes narrowing as he walked back over to the woman. “But this ship is traveling through space, I saw it.”</p><p>“The impossible truth, Doctor.” The woman whispered conspiratorially. “We’re traveling among the stars in a spaceship that shouldn’t be able to fly.”</p><p>“How?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p>“I don’t know.” The woman admitted. “There’s a darkness at the heart of this nation. It threatens every one of us. Help us, Doctor.” She begged. “You’re our only hope… Your child is safe.”</p><p>The Doctor’s head tilted, eyebrows knitting together once more, as the woman held out something for him to take.</p><p>“This device will lead you to her.” The woman explained, shoving it into the Doctor’s hand. “Now go, quickly!” She ordered, disappearing into an access tunnel.</p><p>The Doctor stood there, confused for a moment, before his eyes widened.</p><p>“El!” He breathed, running as he followed the locator’s directions.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El groaned, gasping as she blinked grogginess out of her eyes. One of the smiling statues was set into the wall, and El herself had been put into a chair. The room was small, but not so small as to be claustrophobic, but still, El was uncomfortable being inside on her own.</p><p>“Welcome to voting cubicle 330C.” A male voice announced, startling El. “Please leave this installation as you would wish to find it.” It instructed, as El shot to her feet, looking around.</p><p>Four monitors, like the TARDIS scanner, were bolted onto the wall, under them, three buttons labeled protest, record, and forget were also underneath the screens.</p><p>“The United Kingdom reserves the right to recognize all its citizens.” The voice continued. “A presentation concerning the history of the Starship UK will begin shortly. Your identity is being confirmed via our electoral roll.” It explained, as the monitors turned on to show a series of numbers running across the screens.</p><p>El frowned, sitting back down in the seat, watching as the screens changed.</p><p>“Name:” The voice began, “Jane Elanor Smith. Age: 1,324.”</p><p>El blinked. That was a <em>big </em>number. And her name… Did it accidentally get the wrong person?</p><p>A little jingle began, and a video started to play, showing a man standing in front of a backdrop of the starship’s logo.</p><p>“You are here,” The man began, “Because you want to know the truth of this starship… And I am talking to you because you are entitled to know. When this presentation has finished, you will be given a choice.” He explained. “To protest, or to forget.”</p><p>El leaned forward curiously.</p><p>“If you choose to protest, understand this.” The man inhaled. “If just one percent of the population of this ship chooses likewise, the program will be discontinued… with consequences for you all.” The man let that simmer for a moment. “If you choose to accept the situation, and we hope that you will, then press the ‘forget’ button.”</p><p>El’s eyes flickered down to the glowing button.</p><p>“All the information I am about to give you will be erased from your memory.” He explained. “You will continue to enjoy the safety and amenities of Starship UK, unburdened of the knowledge of what has been done to save you. Here, then, is the truth, about the Starship UK, and the price which has been paid for the safety of the British people. May God have mercy on our souls…”</p><p>El gasped, looking around fearfully, as she felt her face sticky with tears. She looked down, shaking, as her hand was pressed hard against the forget button.</p><p>A little jingle played, and the screen flashed, a message waiting. A moment later, the screen changed, showing El herself, face red and puffy with uncontrollable tears.</p><p><em>“Listen! Run!” </em>The recording of El begged. <em>“Find Doctor! Get out! Run! Don’t look, run! Please, please… go!”</em></p><p>The message stopped, and El jumped as the door on the side of the room swung open, Mandy sitting on the bench at the other side.</p><p>The Doctor came running in, breathing heavily. “El?” He looked on, worried, as El hit the button to prevent the recording from playing again. “What have you done?”</p><p>El stared at him, unsure of the answer herself.</p><p>------------</p><p>The sonic screwdriver buzzed as the Doctor stood on the seat in the center of the room, scanning the light fixture.</p><p>“Yeah, your basic memory-wipe job.” The Time Lord explained, jumping down after checking the results. “Erased about… twenty-minutes, I would say?”</p><p>“But…” El stood with her arms crossed uncertainly. “Why did I press it?”</p><p>“’Cause everybody does.” Mandy spoke up, standing just outside, like entering the room was going to burn her. Both heads whipped over to her. “Everyone chooses the forget button.”</p><p>The Doctor walked over, leaning down to her level. “Did you?”</p><p>“I’m not eligible to vote yet.” Mandy awkwardly explained. “I’m twelve.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned. “Then how come El got to?”</p><p>“Said I was… 1,324.” El recalled.</p><p>The Doctor glanced back. “Ah, basic DNA scan, but not intuitive enough to tell a child apart from an adult on a physical level.”</p><p>“Any time after you’re 16 you’re allowed to see the film, and then you get to choose.” Mandy explained. “And once every five years.”</p><p>“And once every five years everybody chooses the forget button.” The Doctor stated. He laughed to himself. “Democracy in action.”</p><p>“How do you not know about this?” Mandy asked. “Are you American too?”</p><p>“Oh, I’m way worse than American.” The Doctor retorted, going over to the buttons. “I can’t even see the movie, won’t play for me.” He pointed to the screens.</p><p>“Played for me.” El stated.</p><p>“Well, the difference is, it doesn’t recognize me as human.” The Doctor explained.</p><p>Mandy looked the Doctor up and down. “You look human.”</p><p>“No, you look Time Lord.” He retorted. “My people came first.”</p><p>“Your people.” El tilted her head, walking to the Doctor’s side. “There are more?”</p><p>The Doctor leaned back from the screens, going deathly still, as he glanced at El. “…no. There were, but there aren’t… Just me now.” He sighed. “Long story, there was a bad day. Terrible stuff, and you know what? I would love to forget every last bit of it, but I don’t.” He pointed. “Not ever. ‘Cause this is what I do, every day, every second.” He stepped back from the console slightly, rubbing his hands together with a sudden, excited grin. “This. Hold tight.” He advised. “We’re bringing down the government.”</p><p>The Doctor slammed his fist down on the protest button, which began to glow red. The door out into the hallway slammed shut by itself, trapping the Doctor and El inside.</p><p>The smiling marionette’s head began to rotate around slowly, looking upon the two with a snarling frown and beady red eyes.</p><p>The floor began to split open, and the Doctor pulled El into the corner with him, as they looked down into the red shaft extending down into the distance below.</p><p>“Say ‘whee!’” The Doctor looked at her, laughing.</p><p>“Ahh!” El screamed, as they fell into the pit.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Whoa!” The Doctor came sliding out of the tube, landing in ankle-high water. At least, he hoped it was water. He got to his feet, slipping and sliding, as El came screaming out of the same tube as well.</p><p>El coughed, throwing away a bit of the food rubbish she’d landed in to the side.</p><p>“High speed air cannon.” The Doctor explained, scanning the area with the sonic screwdriver. “Lousy way to travel.”</p><p>El looked around. “Where…?”</p><p>“600 feet down, 20 miles laterally, puts us at the heart of the ship. I’d say…” The Doctor sniffed. “Lancashire. So what’s this then? A cave?” He asked, as El got to her feet, trying not to grimace at all the discarded half-eaten meals and the ankle-high soup the traveling duo had found themselves in. “Can’t be a cave,” The Doctor continued. “Looks like a cave.”</p><p>El grimaced. “Stinky.”</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor agreed. “But, only food refuse.” The Doctor noted, examining a bit. “Organic, coming in through feeder tubes threaded throughout the ship.”</p><p>El frowned, poking the floor with her hand. “Squishy.” She noted.</p><p>“Feeding what, though?” The Doctor wondered.</p><p>Something groaned, and the Doctor instantly shot to his feet.</p><p>The Doctor looked to El, a look of terror plastered on his face. “Uh…” He stuttered, sonic screwdriver still buzzing. “It’s not a floor, it’s a…” He stuttered, shoving the screwdriver in his pocket.</p><p>“What?” El asked, as the Doctor helped her up.</p><p>“The next word is kind of a word, take deep, calming breaths,” He instructed, taking El’s hands, “Go ‘ommm.’”</p><p>“’Ommm…’” El mimicked, looking confused.</p><p>“It’s a… tongue.” The Doctor finally answered.</p><p>El blinked. “…A tongue?”</p><p>“A tongue!” The Doctor excitedly nodded. “A great big tongue!”</p><p>“This is…” El looked around fearfully. “A mouth… mouth!?”</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor confirmed, “But, on the plus side, roomy.”</p><p>El stuttered. “How?”</p><p>“How big is this beastie?” The Doctor excitedly asked, scanning around. “Blimey! If this is just the mouth, I’d love to see the stomach!” The mouth’s owner groaned, and the Doctor froze. “But not right now.” The Time Lord quickly amended.</p><p>“...way out?” El asked.</p><p>“Okay, it’s being fed through surgically-implanted feeder-tubes, so, the normal entrance is…” The Doctor looked, to a massive set of teeth held shut. “Closed for business.”</p><p>El tilted her head. Some of those gaps looked big enough to fit through. She began walking.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor shouted, as the ‘floor’ beneath them began to quake. “Stop! Don’t move! Too late, it’s started!”</p><p>“What?” El asked, falling into the Doctor, trying to hold herself up.</p><p>“Swallow reflex!” The Doctor answered, slipping and taking El down with him with a scream. “I’m going to stimulate the chemo receptors!” He explained, trying to push himself back up, as the sonic screwdriver’s buzzing changed slightly.</p><p>“The what!?”</p><p>“The eject button!” The Doctor explained.</p><p>"Button?” El repeated.</p><p>“Think about it!” The Doctor retorted, finally getting to his feet.</p><p>El stood up as well, and gasped, as a massive wave began to approach from the enormous beast’s esophagus.</p><p>“Right then!” The Doctor shouted, straightening his bow tie. “This isn’t going to be big on dignity!” He held out a hand for El to take and grasped the girl’s hand tightly. “GERONIMO!” He shouted, as El screamed.</p><p>And the wave hit them.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El spluttered, coughing as… water, let’s call it water, dripped from the ceiling.</p><p>“There’s no sign of concussion, nothing broken,” The Doctor outlined, working a door with the sonic, and he turned to El, “and yes, you are covered in sick.”</p><p>El groaned. “Where?”</p><p>“Overspill pipe, at a guess.” The Doctor answered, as El got to her feet.</p><p>“Stinky.” El commented, walking over to the Doctor.</p><p>“Oh!” The Doctor turned to her, “That’s not the pipe.”</p><p>“Oh.” El blinked, going to sniff one of her sleeves, before recoiling in disgust, gagging.</p><p>“Yeah, I’ll show you how to work the TARDIS’s shower when we get back.”</p><p>“Way out?” El inquired.</p><p>“One door, one button, one condition.” The Doctor turned to her. “We forget everything we ever saw.” He explained, as a duplicate of the forget button from the voting room lit up by the door. “Look familiar?” He asked of El. “That’s the carrot-“ The lights turned on, and the Doctor turned to look at the smiler booth illuminated by the light. “And there’s the stick!” He began walking over to the two booths. “There’s a creature living in the heart of this ship, what’s it doing there?” He demanded, El following.</p><p>The heads began turning around, showing the statues frowning.</p><p>“No, that’s not going to work on me.” The Doctor growled. “Come on. Big old beast below decks, and everyone who protests gets shoved down its gullet. Is that how it works?”</p><p>The heads spun around faster, showing the same snarling frown from the voting room.</p><p>“Stop it!” The Doctor groaned. “I’m not leaving, and I’m not forgetting! And what are you fellas going to do about it?”</p><p>The booths swung open, the statues standing up, and walking out.</p><p>“Doctor?” El clung to him, as the Smilers approached the two threatening.</p><p>A sudden third party brushed past them, firing a futuristic revolver into the Smilers, taking the two robots down. She twirled the pistol, and slid it straight into her holster, turning to the Doctor.</p><p>Oh, it was the woman from the engine room. Free of her mask, it seemed.</p><p>“Look who it is.” The Doctor sighed in relief. “You look a lot better without the mask.” He remarked.</p><p>The woman walked over, smiling, as her eyes locked on the child. “You must be El. I’m Liz. Liz 10.”</p><p>“…hi?” El replied unsurely at the stranger who seemed to recognize her.</p><p>“Nice to meet you, same about the sick.” Liz proceeded back over to the door, fiddling with the controls. “You know Mandy?” She asked, ushering the other little girl in. “She’s very brave.”</p><p>“How did you find us?” The Doctor asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously.</p><p>“Stuck my gizmo on you.” The woman answered, throwing one of the same gadgets she’d given the Doctor to find El over to him. “Been listening in. Nice moves on the hurl escape. So,” She looked questioningly to the Doctor, “What’s the big fella doin’ down here?”</p><p>“You’re over 16, you’ve voted.” The Doctor retorted, shoving the locator into his pocket. “Whatever the reason, you’ve chosen to forget.”</p><p>“No.” Liz sardonically replied. “Never voted, never forgot. Not technically a British subject.”</p><p>“Then who and what are you, and how do you know me?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p>Liz smiled. “You’re a bit hard to miss, love. Mysterious stranger, MO consistent with higher alien intelligence, hair of an idiot…” The Doctor defensively rubbed his slick head. “I’ve been brought up on the stories. My whole family was.”</p><p>“Your family?” The Doctor repeated.</p><p>The Smilers on the ground began to spasm.</p><p>“They’re repairing!” Liz recognized. “Doesn’t take ‘em long. Let’s move.” Liz exited the pipeline first, followed by Mandy, and the Doctor made sure to usher El through next, and slammed the door behind them as they proceeded through the ship.</p><p>“The Doctor, the old drinking buddy of Henry XII.” Liz regaled them as they spedwalked. “Tea and scones with Li II. Vicky was a bit on the fence with you, weren’t she? Knighted and exiled you on the same day. And so much for the Virgin Queen!” She laughed. “You bad, bad boy!”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly breathed in realization. “Liz 10?”</p><p>“Elizabeth X.” The woman replied with her full name. “And down!” She ordered, suddenly drawing her gun, and turning around.</p><p>The Doctor ducked, pulling El and Mandy down with him, as a blast to the chest knocked down another Smiler that had been following them.</p><p>“I’m the bloody queen mate.” Liz blew the barrel of the gun. “Basically; I rule.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. A Lonely Decision</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The metal door clanged as the four entered a small corridor. Something inside was clanging, and the Doctor ran over to the bars to investigate.</p><p>“There’s a high speed Vator through there.” Liz guided. She caught sight of the Doctor and moved to join him. “Oh, yeah, there’s these things.” She said, looking at two chained tentacles with banging against the wall. “Any ideas?”</p><p>“Saw one.” El spoke up. “Hole in floor.”</p><p>“It’s all one creature…” The Doctor peered closer. “The same one we were caught inside, reaching out… It must be growing through the mechanisms of the entire ship.”</p><p>“What?” Liz looked over to the Doctor. “Like an infestation?”</p><p>The Doctor responded with a short nod, still staring at the tendrils banging against the walls.</p><p>Liz looked back, a disgusted look on her face. “Someone’s helping it. Feeding it… Feeding my subjects to it.” She spat, turning on her heel. “Come on. We’ve got to keep moving.”</p><p>Liz and Mandy charged down the corridor, but the Doctor stood, staring at the creature.</p><p>“Doctor?” El asked.</p><p>“Oh, El…” The Doctor breathed, staring at the creature’s feelers with pity. “We shouldn’t have ever come here…”</p><p>El’s own words that she’d left for herself to find rung out in her mind, even as the Doctor gently took her hand, and tried to catch up with Liz.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor balanced uncertainly, trying to walk over a field of glasses of water arranged in front of the mirror. Liz had taken them back to the palace, now, they were trying to figure out what to do next.</p><p>“Why all the glasses?” The Doctor wondered.</p><p>“To remind me every single day that my Government is up to something.” Liz bitterly remarked, laying on her bed. “And it’s my duty to find out what.”</p><p>The Doctor bent down, picking up the porcelain mask. “A Queen going undercover to investigate her own kingdom.” The Doctor remarked, holding the mask out to examine it.</p><p>“Secrets are being kept from me.” Liz hissed. “I don’t have a choice. Ten years, I’ve been at this. My entire reign. And you’ve achieved more in an afternoon.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “How old were you when you came to the throne?”</p><p>“40.” Liz answered. “Why?”</p><p>El turned around. 40+10, that meant the woman was older than Brenner was, but she didn’t look a day over thirty.</p><p>“Don’t look old.” El remarked.</p><p>Liz laughed. “Thanks. Yeah, they slowed my body clock. Keeps me looking like the stamps.”</p><p>“And you always wear this in public?” The Doctor asked, referring to the mask.</p><p>“Undercover’s not easy when you’re me.” Liz defensively replied. “The autographs. The bunting.”</p><p>El frowned. “What is… bun-ting?”</p><p>“I’ll explain later.” The Doctor answered, experimentally tapping the mask. “Air-balanced porcelain. It stays on by itself ‘cause it’s perfectly sculpted to your face.”</p><p>Liz frowned. “Yeah. So what?”</p><p>“Oh, Liz, so everything.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>The doors at the end of the room opened, and a squad of men wearing black cloaks came striding in.</p><p>“What is this?” Liz demanded, getting to her feet. “How dare you come in here?”</p><p>“Ma’am, you have expressed interest in the interior workings of the Starship UK.” The leader replied. “You will come with us now.”</p><p>Liz puffed herself up. “Why would I do that?”</p><p>The man’s head suddenly turned around, revealing the same, snarling frown of the Smilers, as the others in his group followed suit.</p><p>El clung to the Doctor’s side. “What… are they?”</p><p>“Half-Smiler, half-human.” The Doctor answered. “Cyborgs.”</p><p>“Whatever you creatures are, I am still your Queen.” Liz growled. “On whose authority is this being done?”</p><p>“The highest authority, ma’am.” The cyborg answered.</p><p>“<em>I</em> am the highest authority!” Liz spat.</p><p>“Precisely, ma’am.” The cyborg calmly confirmed. “You must go now, ma’am.”</p><p>“Where?” Liz demanded.</p><p>“The Tower, ma’am.”</p><p>“Tower?” El repeated, looking to the Doctor, as they begun to be led out.</p><p>“One of the most famous landmarks in Britain.” The Doctor answered. “The Tower of London.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Winders led the four in through an old wooden door, ancient stone walls lined the room, a stark contrast to the futuristic technology dotted around.</p><p>“Where?” El asked, looking at a small circular vent on the ground, through which more of the creature’s tendrils could be seen.</p><p>“Lowest point of Starship UK.” The Doctor answered, gently pulling El away. “The dungeon.”</p><p>“Ma’am.” An older gentleman across the room greeted.</p><p>“Hawthorne.” Liz recognized, looking around. “So this is where you hid yourself away.” The man approached, bowing respectfully. “You’ve got some explaining to do.” She seethed.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened, as he noticed a group on the far end of the room. “Children--you’ve got children in here. What’s all that about?” He asked, as they walked past, kindly running one child’s head.</p><p>“Protestors and citizens of limited value are fed to the beast.” Hawthorne explained. “For some reason, it won’t eat the children.” He looked back to the Doctor. “You’re the first adult it’s spared, you’re very lucky.”</p><p>The Doctor sarcastically huffed. “Yeah, look at me, torture chamber in the Tower of London… that takes me back. Except, it’s not a torture chamber, is it?” The Doctor rhetorically asked, heading deeper into the room. “Well, except it is. Except it isn’t. Depends on your angle.”</p><p>He leaned on a circular railing, the others joining him, as they looked on in confusion.</p><p>El grimaced, as she felt the raw, uncontrollable, <em>agony </em>radiating out.</p><p>A hole had been cut into the floor, a massive brain on the other side, being zapped periodically with electricity every few moments.</p><p>“What’s that?” Liz breathed.</p><p>“Well, like I said, it depends on your angle.” The Doctor glanced up. “It’s either the exposed pain centres of the big fella’s brain being tortured relentlessly…” He growled.</p><p>“Or…” Liz prompted.</p><p>“Or, it’s the gas pedal.” The Doctor replied, fuse nearing its end. “The accelerator, Starship UK’s ‘go faster’ button.”</p><p>“I don’t understand.” Liz stated.</p><p>“Don’t you?” The Doctor shot back. “Go on. The spaceship that could never fly, no vibration on deck.” He pointed down. “This creature, this poor, trapped, <em>terrified </em>creature…” He hissed. “It’s not an infestation, it’s not an invasion… It’s what you have instead of an engine.” The Doctor seethed, clenching the railing. “And this place is where you hurt it, where you torture it, day after day, just so you can keep moving!” He held up a finger. “Tell you what. Normally, it’s above the range of human hearing,” The Doctor ran over, pulling the grate off, allowing the tentacle to reach out into the room.</p><p>The Doctor flicked the sonic screwdriver open. “This is the sound none of you wanted to hear.” Was all he said, before pointing it at the tentacle, and pressing the button.</p><p>In an instant, the most horrible, heart wrenching wailing El had ever heard filled the room. El felt tears beginning to build up, as the sound, combined with the intense pain radiating from the creature, finally got to her.</p><p>“Stop it.” Liz begged for the rest of them.</p><p>The Doctor’s hand fell, and the sound stopped, becoming inaudible once again.</p><p>Liz turned to Hawthorne, slowly creeping up on the man. “Who did this?”</p><p>Hawthorne swallowed. “We act on instructions from the highest authority.”</p><p>“<em>I</em> am the highest authority.” Liz hissed. Hawthorne responded with a knowing sort of smile. “This creature will be released,” She determined, turning to the exposed brain. “Now.” None of them responded. “I said now!” She bellowed. “Is no one listening to me!?”</p><p>The Doctor stood, leaning against a pillar, fiddling with the porcelain mask. “Liz.” He spoke up, walking over. “Your mask.”</p><p>Liz frowned. “What about my mask?”</p><p>“Look at it.” The Doctor prompted, throwing it over to her. “It’s old. 200 years old, I’d say.” He began, as soon as she caught the mask in her hand.”</p><p>“Yeah, it’s an antique, so?” Liz asked.</p><p>“Yeah, an antique made by craftsmen over 200 years ago, perfectly sculpted to fit your face.” The Doctor stated in response. “They slowed your body clock alright… but you’re a lot older than 50. Nearer three hundred. And it’s been a long old reign.”</p><p>Liz took a step back. “Nah, it’s been 10 years.” She insisted, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself of that, rather than the Doctor. “I’ve been on this throne 10 years!”</p><p>“10 years.” The Doctor granted. “And the same 10 years over, and over again. Always,” He grabbed her by the arm, pulling her over to a seat, with two buttons in front of it. “Leading you here.”</p><p>Liz looked down at the two buttons, one marked forget, the other marked abdicate, in budding horror. She slowly turned to Hawthorne.</p><p>“What have you done?” Liz questioned, horrified of the coming answer.</p><p>“Only what you have ordered.” Hawthorne answered. “We work for <em>you </em>ma’am. The Winders, the Smilers, all of us.” He reached onto the top of the screen and hit the button.</p><p>“If you are watching this…” The recording of Liz began. “If <em>I </em>am watching this… You have found your way to the Tower of London.” The present Liz sat down, as the screen changed to show a massive creature, no arms or legs, with an elongated tail and several long whisker-like structures growing out the bottom. “What you are looking at is called a Star Whale. Once, there were millions of them.”</p><p>El and Mandy watched with fascination, Liz with horror, and the Doctor with an unreadable gaze.</p><p>“They lived in the depths of space,” The recording continued, “And according to legend, they guided the first deep-space travelers through the asteroid belts. This one, as far as we are aware, is the last of its kind. And what we have done to it… breaks my heart.” Liz on the recording began to tear up, evidently finding it difficult to regale the circumstances. “The Earth was burning. Our sun had turned on us, and every other nation had fled to the skies. Our children screamed as the sky grew hotter. And then it came…” She looked up. “Like a miracle. A Star Whale… the Last of the Star Whales.” She swallowed. “We trapped it. Built our ship around it. And we rode on its back to safety. If you wish our voyage to continue, then you must press the forget button.” She instructed.</p><p>Liz looked down at the button, horrified of what she had done. What she had done countless times before.</p><p>“Be again, the heart of this nation, untainted.” The recording continued. “If not… press the other button. Your reign will end, the Star Whale will be released… and our ship will disintegrate.” She breathed in. “I hope I keep the strength to make the right decision.”</p><p>El looked on, shaking. “I… picked this?” She whispered to herself in horror. She herself had been put through the ringer, she knew that creature’s pain better than anyone, but the moment it was something else, something not human… “Why?” She turned to the Doctor.</p><p>“You were trying to protect me from an impossible decision.” The Doctor recognized, clenching his jaw, and shaking his head. “Humanity or the alien. You took it upon yourself to save me from that. And that was wrong.” He held up a finger. “You don’t <em>ever </em>decide what I need and what I don’t need to know.</p><p>“…don’t remember.” El responded.</p><p>“What matters is you did it.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“I’m…” El stammered. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. “You’re just a kid… I should’ve never allowed you to find yourself in that position in the first place. When I get done here, I’m taking you back to Earth.” He turned away from her, walking over to a control console.</p><p>“Why?” El demanded, as the Doctor began fiddling around with the controls. “Don’t remember what happened.”</p><p>“Yeah, I know…” The Doctor replied. “You’re only human.”</p><p>“What are you doing?” Liz asked, carefully approaching.</p><p>“The worst thing I’ll ever do.” The Doctor replied, turning up a dial. “I’m going to pass a massive electrical charge through the Star Whale’s brain… It’ll knock out the higher functions of its brain, leave it a vegetable.” He looked up. “The ship will still fly, but the whale won’t feel it.”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor, horrified. “You’ll hurt it.”</p><p>The Doctor grunted in frustration. “Look, three options. One: I let the Star Whale continue in unendurable agony. Two: I kill everyone on this ship. Three:” The Doctor sighed. “I murder, a poor, innocent, beautiful creature as painlessly as I can… and then I find a new name, because I won’t be the Doctor anymore.”</p><p>“There must be something we can do,” Liz insisted, “Some other way.”</p><p>“Nobody, talk to me…” The Doctor growled. “<em>Nobody HUMAN has anything to say to me today!” </em>He furiously erupted, slamming his hands on the terminal.</p><p>El took a step back, shaking, as the Doctor went back to his terrible work.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El and Mandy sat against the wall, watching, as the Doctor continued working, mind looking like it was somewhere else.</p><p>The door at the far end of the room opened, and a group of the children came walking in.</p><p>“Timmy!” Mandy called, getting to her feet, running over. “You made it, you’re okay.” The boy stared at her. “It’s me… it’s Mandy.”</p><p>El gasped, as the tentacle from below reached in, about to shout and push it away. But, curiously… While it did reach down, it was doing so slowly, gently…</p><p>Like it was a dog, letting a child pet it. Nothing but kindness, and even pity, radiated out, and El gasped again, as it hit her.</p><p>The tendril in the broken section of the ship could’ve hurt her, but it didn’t. it was trying to scare her away, yes, but not harm her directly.</p><p><em>“Our children screamed…” </em>El remembered. <em>“And then it came. Like a miracle.”</em></p><p>
  <em>So, he didn’t interfere with the affairs of other peoples or planets… unless he saw a child crying.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“It won’t eat the children.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Like a miracle… The last of its kind.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Just me now.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“The last of its kind.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Sadness… but no anger.</em>
</p><p>El gasped, turning over to Liz. “Come here!” She pulled on the woman’s arm, running back over to the button console.</p><p>The Doctor looked up, eyes going saucer sized. “El, no!” He yelled, trying to run over, as El slammed Liz’s hand down on the button. “No!”</p><p>The sound of gigantic clamps being released reverberated throughout the room, and the Star Whale roared, the room beginning to shake like an earthquake was tearing through it.</p><p>“El…” The Doctor breathed, looking around. “What have you done?”</p><p>“Nothing…” El replied, looking around as the room settled.</p><p>“We’ve increased speed!” Hawthorne incredulously breathed.</p><p>“It’s still here…” Liz looked down to the exposed brain, which was completely calm. “I don’t understand.”</p><p>“Didn’t come from nowhere,” El spoke, the most words the Doctor had ever seen her speak since she’d come on board the TARDIS, “Wanted to help. Knew you needed help.” El turned to look at the Doctor. “Old, and nice, and the last.” She tilted her head. “Couldn’t just watch.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor stood, arms crossed, as he looked out into the vast blue expanse of space.</p><p>Little footsteps came up from behind, and he turned, as El held out the porcelain mask.</p><p>“From Liz.” El stated. “No more secrets.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her, and back at the empty space outside. “El… You could’ve killed everybody on this ship.”</p><p>“…Star Whale.” El replied.</p><p>The Doctor looked back at her. “And you saved it… I know, I know.”</p><p>El looked out. “The pain… just made it nice.” El closed her eyes, feeling void of the Star Whale’s misery for the first time since they’d stumbled across the ship.</p><p>The Doctor furrowed his eyebrows. “But you couldn’t have known how it would react.”</p><p>“Not you.” El retorted. “Knew it because I saw you.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, pulling El into a hug. “Hey, for what it’s worth… I’m sorry about blowing up earlier. And I’m not really going to drop you back on Earth.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right then, big day tomorrow!” The Doctor said, striding back into the TARDIS. Sniffing at his clothes and pulling back. “Maybe a bath would be a good way to finish today off.”</p><p>El froze up, the TARDIS doors slamming shut behind her. “…bath?”</p><p>“Yeah, you know, a bath.” The Doctor replied, glancing back at her. “You know, soap, shampoo, to get all the nasty stuff off you so you can sleep well… Why, do you not like baths?”</p><p>El shook her head. For contexts, the ‘baths’ she was used to were sessions in sensory deprivation tanks, to use her powers to spy on people across the planet or make contact with monsters from alternate dimensions.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El, picking up on her discomfort. “Hey, don’t worry… The baths on board the TARDIS are nothing like the baths you’re used to. Promise.”</p><p>“Promise?” El repeated, not knowing the word.</p><p>“Something I won’t ever break.” The Doctor pledged. “Cross my hearts.”</p><p>The two jumped, startled, as the phone on the console began to ring.</p><p>“What is that?” El asked.</p><p>“Phone!” The Doctor replied, walking up to the console, setting the controls. “People use it to talk to each other. It’s that rectangle sort of looking metal square, could you answer it for me?”</p><p>El leaned across the console, and picked it up, the ringing ceasing as she held it to her ear. “H-Hello?” She turned to the Doctor. “He says he is… ‘Prime Minster.’”</p><p>“Minister.” The Doctor corrected. “Which one?” He pointed at a red lever nearby El, the girl pulling it in response.</p><p>“Which one?” El asked into the phone. “Brit-ish.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Which British one?”</p><p>“Which British?” El asked. “Winced-in Church-hill.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed at El’s pronunciation, taking the phone. “Winnie! What’s up?”</p><p><em>“Tricky situation, Doctor.” </em>The WWII era Prime Minister answered. <em>“Potentially very dangerous… I think I’m going to need you.”</em></p><p>“Don’t worry about a thing, Prime Minister,” The Doctor replied, smiling all the while. “We’re on our way.” He placed the phone back down on the hook, looking to El.</p><p>The TARDIS shook as it once again dematerialized, leaving the Starship UK and its people behind.</p><p>Unbeknownst to any of them, however, a gigantic, sinister crack had split into existence on the outer hull of the ship, glowing faintly…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Bath Time</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Here?” The Doctor poked his head into a room, being answered with the sight of an art gallery. “No.”</p><p>––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––</p><p>“Here?” The Doctor poked his head into a different room, a nautical whistle sounding. “No.”</p><p>–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––</p><p>“Here!” The Doctor shouted in satisfaction, throwing open the door. Every bedroom typically had its own bathroom, but since El evidently had… <em>bad </em>experiences with submerging herself in large amounts of water, the Doctor had the TARDIS construct a specially designed room, what amounted to basically a pool with hot water in, and soap and shampoo on the sides, where he could be close by if things went awry. “The bath!”</p><p>The Doctor threw his arms out, grinning widely, as he turned to look at El. “Well, whaddya think?”</p><p>El looked at the pool of water apprehensively. “…prime minister.” She tried to remind the Doctor.</p><p>“We’re in a time machine.” The Doctor retorted. “If he doesn’t know we didn’t come straight away after getting his phone call, it won’t hurt him. Besides,” The Doctor sniffed the air, gagging, “We don’t want to meet him smelling like stomach acid and feet. There’s your soap and shampoo.” He pointed, glancing at her, “I would’ve put conditioner in, but I don’t think your hair is long enough for it…”</p><p>El looked to the gigantic tub, and vehemently shook her head.</p><p>“I’ll leave,” The Doctor pointed.</p><p>“No.” El crossed her arms. “No bath.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. Human children were <em>stubborn</em>. “El, if you don’t get a bath, you’re going to be all smelly. People don’t like smelly people.”</p><p>“Not getting in.” El insisted.</p><p>The Doctor glanced over to the water, thinking about what to do. He wasn’t going to throw her in. The water was only deep enough to reach her neck, but she could still drown if she panicked, and since she evidently didn’t like water, panic she would.</p><p>The Doctor grinned, as something hit him. “Alright then, guess that leaves it all to myself then!” He shouted, taking a running jump into the water, splashing everywhere. The Doctor surface, and spat out a little bit of water, still fully clothed, looking at El.</p><p>“…not getting in.” El looked back.</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “Suit yourself. Mind passing me that bath toy?” He pointed to a wind-up boat at her feet.</p><p>El looked down in confusion. “Bath… toy?” For her ‘bath time’ meant mental strain, teams of scientists observing her as she was lowered into the tank, with the looming threat of being locked in isolation if she failed to do as instructed.</p><p>It was not a place for toys.</p><p>“Thank you.” The Doctor offered as El mentally pushed it out to him. The Time Lord turned the winding mechanism, and watched happily as the boat spluttered along, bouncing off the walls.</p><p>El watched, as the Doctor began happily playing with the toy boat and looked longingly at the water.</p><p>Internally, the Time Lord grinned. Hook, line, and sinker.</p><p>––––––––––––</p><p>“Oh no, it’s Godzilla!” The Doctor said in a high-pitched voice, splashing a toy Godzilla in the water near the boat. “Who will save us!?” The Doctor lowered his voice.</p><p>“Me!” El boomed, holding a robot toy in her hand, still clothed following the Doctor’s example.</p><p>“Rargh, Godzilla isn’t scared of a little giant robot!” The Doctor growled, pushing the boat out of the way, banging the toy against the other gently.</p><p>El twisted the robot’s arm so its fist was pointed out and hit the Godzilla toy in its plastic head.</p><p>“Argh, the great and mighty Godzilla, King of the Monsters, defeated…” The Doctor let out a theatrical sigh, dropping the toy, and watching it sink to the bottom of the pool-sized tub. “Blergh…” He descended into giggles. “See?” He asked El. “Perfectly fine.”</p><p>“Doctor?”</p><p>“Hm?” He replied.</p><p>“What is… God-zilla?” El asked.</p><p>“A very big lizard.” The Doctor answered. “Sometimes good, sometimes bad. He’s a movie star.”</p><p>El cocked her head. “Movie?”</p><p>“Moving pictures with sound that tell stories.” The Doctor explained. He smiled. “There’s a cinema with a lot of the classics in here. After you finish your bath, we can watch some... Might have to stay away from ‘King of the Monsters.’” He mumbled something about spatial-genetic multiplicity. “I’ll leave you to it,” He said, approaching the edge, ready to climb out.</p><p>“No.” El grabbed the Doctor’s hand. “Don’t want to be alone.” She requested.</p><p>The Doctor glanced back at her. “It’s not appropriate for someone else to be in the bath with you.”</p><p>“You just were.”</p><p>“That was different.” The Doctor shook his head. “We’re both wearing clothes and were playing with toys. That’s no different than a pool. But to clean yourself, you’ll need to take your clothes off. That isn’t socially acceptable, to have someone watch you bathing.”</p><p>El frowned. “The bad people watched me.”</p><p>The Doctor froze for a moment.</p><p><em>‘…Okay, new item on the itinerary. Find who messed with this little girl’s sense of boundaries and give them a taste of the </em>special<em> medicine.’ </em>The Time Lord mentally growled. He turned around, and held up a finger, pointing at El. “Okay, but my back is going to be turned the whole time.”</p><p>“Okay.” El nodded, as the Doctor turned around, trying to walk to the other end.</p><p>The Doctor sniffed his clothes, and wretched. He was going to need a bath himself after El got done.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. A Tyrannical Menace</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The doors to the TARDIS opened, and the Doctor peeked his head out, being greeted by a squadron of soldiers with their automatic rifles raised directly at his face.</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. Winston did always have a funny sense of humor like that, he reflected, stepping out. He’d switched the red bow tie and braces out for a blue set, replacing the shirt with a plain white button-up. Important detail? Probably not.</p><p>The Doctor watched as an overweight man in a suit with a hat pushed through the soldiers, cigar clenched in his teeth, as he glared at the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled, “El…” He gently pulled the girl out, holding up a hand in the man’s direction. “Winston Churchill!”</p><p>Churchill looked at the Time Lord, and his jaw dropped. “Doctor? Is that you?”</p><p>The Doctor grinned. “Winston, my old friend!” He greeted, hand shooting out.</p><p>Churchill made like he was about to return the gesture, before his look grew stern, and he pointed, making a gesture for the Doctor to present something.</p><p>“Ha!” The Doctor laughed. “Every time!”</p><p>El glanced at the overweight man, and then back to the Doctor. “What does he want?”</p><p>The Doctor continued smiling. “The TARDIS key, of course.”</p><p>“Think of what I could achieve with your remarkable machine, Doctor!” Churchill replied. “All the lives that could be saved!”</p><p>The Doctor tsked. “Doesn’t work like that.” He shut the door.</p><p>“Must I take it by force?” Churchill asked.</p><p>The Doctor shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. “I’d like to see you try…”</p><p>Churchill stood silently, staring at the Doctor, before rolling his eyes. “At ease…” He directed to the soldiers, sounding reluctant, the men lowering their weapons.</p><p>The Doctor turned his nose up. “You rang?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You’ve changed your face again.” Churchill remarked, as he led the Doctor and El along down one of the hallways.</p><p>Churchill glanced at El. “And had a child.”</p><p>The Doctor looked at El. “She’s not technically mine. Well, she is… on a sort of finders keepers’ basis, I suppose.”</p><p>Churchill looked at the Doctor. “You didn’t.”</p><p>“I didn’t kidnap her!” The Doctor insisted, voice raising by six octaves. “It’s not kidnapping if the kid isn’t asleep!”</p><p>“What is this place?” El asked, looking around curiously.</p><p>“Cabinet war rooms.” The Doctor answered. “Heart of the British government during the Second World War. Top-Secret heart of the war effort, hidden right under London.”</p><p>Churchill focused on the end of the hall. “You’re late, by the way.”</p><p>“Requisitions, sir.” A woman sped over to Churchill, offering him a clipboard and pen.</p><p>“Excellent.” The prime minister responded, signing off on it.</p><p>The Doctor scowled, checking his watch. “Late?”</p><p>“I rang you a month ago.” Churchill stated, still marching down the hallway.</p><p>El looked at the Doctor. “’We have time machine?’” She quoted.</p><p>The Doctor groaned. “Sorry, sorry.” He apologized. “She’s a Type 40 TARDIS, still running in the new engines.”</p><p>Churchill stopped, as he looked over the woman’s face as she took back the clipboard. “Something the matter, Breen?” He asked. “You look a little down in the dumps!”</p><p>“No, sir.” Breen shook her head self-consciously. “Fine, sir.”</p><p>“Action this day, Breen!” Winston pumped a fist. “Action this day!”</p><p>Breen smiled, nodding. “Yes, sir.”</p><p>“Excuse me, sir,” A man came running up out of breath, as Breen left. “We’ve got another formation coming in, Prime Minister. Stukas, by the look of them.”</p><p>“We shall go up top then, Group Captain.” Churchill ordered. “We shall give them what for!” He bellowed inspiringly, as he turned to the Doctor. “Coming, Doctor?”</p><p>“Why?” The Time Lord asked.</p><p>Churchill snatched his cane away. “I have something to show you.” He said, motioning for the two to follow.</p><p>The British Prime Minister led El and the Doctor into a lift, hitting the switch to send them up. Churchill puffed on his cigar, the Doctor waving away smoke, and grimacing as the unpleasant scent hit her nose.</p><p>“We stand at a crossroads, Doctor,” Churchill began, “Quite alone, with our backs against the wall. Invasion is expected daily. So I will grasp with both hands, anything that will give us an advantage, over the Nazi menace.”</p><p>El frowned. “What is… nah-zee?”</p><p>“Nazi.” The Doctor inhaled. “The most evil, most repugnant group of human beings I’ve ever laid eyes on.” He looked to El. “Worse than the people who kept you locked up.” He then turned to Churchill. “What sort of advantage?”</p><p>Churchill stopped the lift, the doors opening. “Follow me.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Wow…” El looked down on the city of London, as Churchill led them onto the roof of the building.</p><p>“Doctor,” Churchill strode up to a man in a lab coat, wearing a helmet, and holding a pair of binoculars. “This is Professor Edwin Bracewell, head of our Ironside Project.”</p><p>The Doctor raised a hand, waving.</p><p>Bracewell returned it kindly. “How do you do?” Before he went back to looking through the binoculars, at the approaching formation of German bombers.</p><p>El looked out onto London, a bomb going off in the far distance. The girl jumped in fear, and looked to the Doctor. “What’s happening?”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at her. “…history.” He answered. “Your history, human history.” He looked out onto the city as well, barrage balloons floating tethered to buildings. “The Second World War… One of the largest, most devastating conflicts in all human history. Millions dead, countless cities reduced to rubble for decades to come… out of this, a new world is born.” He looked back at El. “The world you came from. America as a global superpower, decolonization, the USSR…”</p><p>“Can we help?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head. “Not this time.”</p><p>“Ready, Bracewell?” Churchill called up.</p><p>“Aye-aye, sir!” Bracewell gave the thumbs-up. “On my order… fire!” He ordered.</p><p>An aqua bolt of energy shot out from the other side, and the Doctor froze.</p><p>
  <em>‘No… Please, God, no.’</em>
</p><p>“What’s that?” El asked, as more bolts took down the incoming bombers.</p><p>“That’s not human.” The Doctor breathed, looking up. “That was never human technology. That looked like…” He looked down, staring in the direction of where the shots had originated. “Can’t be… Show me.” He muttered. “Show me!” He ordered, running up the stairs to Bracewell. “Show me what that was!”</p><p>Bracewell stood proudly and turned. “Advance!”</p><p>Churchill smiled. “Our secret weapon, Doctor!”</p><p>The Doctor stood, looking on in horror, as metal robot came sliding in from the other side of the roof. It was shaped like a pepper-shaker, half-spheres running down its ‘skirt.’ Electrical emitters covered by blackout cloth were fixed to the dome, along with an eyestalk, with a plunger-like arm on one side, and a whisk-shaped weapon on the other side</p><p>“What do you think?” Churchill asked, as the Doctor peered closer, horrified. “Quite something, eh?”</p><p>“What are you doing here?” The Doctor demanded of the robot.</p><p>“I AM YOUR SOL-DIER.” The automaton responded.</p><p>The Doctor frowned. “What?”</p><p>“I AM YOUR SOL-DIER.” It repeated.</p><p>“Stop this.” The Doctor hissed. “You stop now! …Oh, you know who I am. You always know.”</p><p>“YOUR IDENTITY IS UN-KNOWN.” The robot replied.</p><p>“Perhaps I can clarify here,” Bracewell pushed in, gesturing to it, “This is one of my Ironsides.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to the professor. “Your <em>what</em>?”               </p><p>Bracewell turned to the Ironside. “You will help the Allied cause in any way you can?”</p><p>“YES.”</p><p>“Until the Germans have been utterly smashed?” Bracewell prompted.</p><p>“YES.”</p><p>“And what is your ultimate aim?” Bracewell inquired.</p><p>“TO WIN THE WAR!” The Ironside proclaimed, scratchy voice echoing into the distance.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“They’re Daleks!” The Doctor insisted, furiously flipping through sheets of schematics provided by Bracewell. “They’re called Daleks!”</p><p>“They are Bracewell’s Ironsides, Doctor, look!” Churchill responded, gesturing at the table. “Blueprints, statistics, field tests, he invented them!”</p><p>“Invented them?” The Doctor incredulously repeated. “No, no, no, no!”</p><p>“Yes!” Churchill retorted. “He approached one of our brass hats a few months ago. Fellow’s a genius.”</p><p>The Doctor leaned forward seriously. “He didn’t invent them… they’re alien.”</p><p>“Alien?” Churchill repeated.</p><p>“…spacemen.” El repeated, looking out into the hall as an Ironside passed, looking in, before going on its way.</p><p>“And totally hostile.” The Doctor finished.</p><p>“Precisely!” Churchill replied. “They will win me the war!”</p><p>He turned the page over, revealing a propaganda poster of the Ironside with the words “TO VICTORY!” above it.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Why won’t you listen to me?” The Doctor frustratedly demanded, walking behind Churchill. “Why did you call me in, if you won’t listen!?”</p><p>Churchill sighed. “When I rang you a month ago, I must admit, I had my doubts. The Ironsides seemed too good to be true.</p><p>“Yes! Right!” The Doctor agreed. “So destroy them! Exterminate them!”</p><p>El tilted her head. “What is exterminate?”</p><p>“But imagine what I could do with a hundred!” Churchill continued. “A thousand!”</p><p>The Doctor glared at the passing Ironside. “I am imagining.” He sighed. “El, tell him?”</p><p>El recoiled. “Tell… what?”</p><p>“About the Daleks.” The Doctor prompted.</p><p>“I… don’t know Daleks.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped and groaned. “Oh, the Earth was stolen in 2008, that’s twenty-five years after I picked you up.” He followed Winston into the war room, watching as an ‘Ironside’ went about its business. “They’re up to something… but what?”</p><p>“…ask it.” El suggested, walking over to the machine.</p><p>The Doctor stiffened. “El. Eleven!”</p><p>El tapped the Dalek, the dome rotating around, the eyestalk looking down at her. “CAN I BE OF AS-SIS-TANCE?”</p><p>El stood there, frozen, as she felt the most intense, violent hatred radiating out from it. Then again, Churchill said they hated the… ‘Nazis,’ so that didn’t seem too out of left field. “My…” She glanced over at the Doctor. “Wants to know. Thinks you’re from space like him.”</p><p>“I AM YOUR SOL-DIER.” The Ironside replied.</p><p>The Doctor stood there, leaning against the pillar, just visibly shaking with barely contained rage.</p><p>“PLEASE EXCUSE ME.” The Ironside stated, turning to resume its duties.</p><p>El turned back to the Doctor. “See?”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, running over to Churchill. “Winston, Winston please.”</p><p>Churchill sighed frustratedly. “We are waging total war, Doctor. Day after day, the Luftwaffe pound this great city like an iron fist.”</p><p>The Doctor narrowed his eyes. “Just wait until the Daleks get started.”</p><p>“Men, women, and children slaughtered.” Churchill continued. “Families torn apart. Wren’s churches in flames!”</p><p>“Yeah, try the <em>Earth</em> in flames!” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“I weep for my country; I weep for my empire.” Churchill said, looking at the Ironside across the way, and the Union Flag under its optic. “It is breaking my heart.” He stated, moving over to the side of the war map.</p><p>“Yes, but you’re resisting, Winston.” The Doctor focused on that much. “The whole world knows you’re resisting! You’re a beacon of hope.”</p><p>“But for how long?” Churchill asked, continuing forth. “Millions will be saved if I used these Ironsides <em>now</em>!”</p><p>“CAN I BE OF AS-SIS-TANCE?” The Ironside asked, lamps on the dome flashing in synchronization with its speech.</p><p>“Shut it!” The Doctor furiously pointed at it, before turning his attention back to Churchill. If he didn’t get this situation under control, <em>now</em>… everyone on earth was as good as dead. “Listen to me.” He begged Winston. “Just listen. The Daleks have no conscience. No mercy. No pity. They are my oldest… and deadliest enemy. You cannot trust them.”</p><p>Churchill drew a breath. “If Hitler invaded Hell, I would give a favorable reference to the Devil. These machines,” He pointed vehemently, “Are our salvation!” A siren began to blare, and Churchill gasped, clutching his chest. “Ah, the all-clear. We are safe… for now.” Winston turned away from the Doctor, walking away, leaving the Doctor alone with the Ironside.</p><p>The Doctor stared at the splitting image of his foe, before it turned, sliding away.</p><p>“You okay?” El asked, appearing at the Time Lord’s side.</p><p>The Doctor looked down to her. “…what does hate look like, El?”</p><p>The girl cocked her head. “Hate?”</p><p>“It looks like a Dalek.” The Doctor stated. “And I’m going to prove it.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Battle in the Sky</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“All right, Prof!” The Doctor went striding into Bracewell’s workshop, loudly announcing his presence to the man. The Daleks had used human co-conspirators before, Bracewell was likely the latest in a long line. “The PM’s been filling me in, amazing things,” He remarked, picking up a spanner, “These Ironsides of yours. You must be very proud.” He discarded the metal tool, picking up a file.</p><p>“Just doing my part.” Bracewell humbly replied, as the Doctor planted himself in a nearby chair.</p><p>“How’d you come up with the idea?” The Doctor asked, flicking through the documents.</p><p>“Well, how does a muse of invention come to anyone?” Bracewell asked in response.</p><p>The Doctor clamped the folder shut, throwing it on the nearby desk. “But you get a lot of these clever ideas, do you?”</p><p>“Well, ideas just seem to teem from my head.” Bracewell answered, smiling excitedly, like only an inventor excited about his work could. “Wonderful things! Let me… let me show you!” He walked over to the desk. “Some musings on hypersonic flight.” He passed off to the approaching Time Lord.</p><p>“Hypersonic?” El asked.</p><p>“Faster-than-sound.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“Gravity bubbles that can sustain life outside the terrestrial atmosphere!” Bracewell also passed over. “Came to me in the bath!”</p><p>An Ironside loomed at the far end of the room, looking at them all.</p><p>El winced. “Hate baths.”</p><p>“And, are these your ideas, or theirs?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>Bracewell shrugged that off with a laugh. “Oh, no, no, no, no. These robots are entirely under my control, Doctor.” He explained, as the Ironside approached, a teacup on a tray balanced on its sucker-arm. “Thank you,” He offered the ironside, taking the tea. “As you can see, the perfect servant,” He took a sip, “As well as the perfect warrior.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know what you’re up to, professor, but whatever they’ve promised you, you cannot trust them. Call them what you like.” The Doctor poked the man in the sternum. “The Daleks are death.”</p><p>“Yes, Doctor!” Churchill agreed, storming loudly into the room, the other Ironside on his heel. “Death to our enemies! Death to the forces of darkness, and death to the Third Reich!”</p><p>“Yes, Winston, and death to everyone else, too!” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“WOULD YOU CARE FOR SOME TEA?” The Ironside asked.</p><p>The Doctor, square at the end of his patience, knocked the tray out of the Ironside’s arm, startling everybody. “Stop this!” The Doctor yelled at the machine. “Why are you here!? What do you want!?”</p><p>The Ironside looked up and down in confusion. “WE SEEK ONLY TO HELP YOU.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes narrowed. “To do what?”</p><p>“TO WIN THE WAR.”</p><p>“And which war is that, then?” The Doctor asked. “The war against the Nazis, or your war, the war against all life in the universe that isn’t Dalek?”</p><p>“…I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. I AM YOUR SOL-DIER.”</p><p>“Oh, yeah?” The Doctor pointed, seething and shaking. “Okay. Okay…” He grabbed a large spanner leaning against the wall, hefting it in his hands. “Okay, soldier… defend yourself!” He spat, swinging, and banging the tool against the metal plating of the Ironside.</p><p>“What the devil!?” Bracewell bellowed.</p><p>“YOU DO NOT REQUIRE TEA?”</p><p>“Stop him!” Bracewell shouted, as the Doctor swung again. “Prime Minister, please!”</p><p>“Doctor, what the devil?” Churchill demanded. “These machines are precious!”</p><p>The Doctor swung again. “Come on!” He yelled. “Fight back! You want to, don’t you!?” He grabbed the eyestalk, forcing it to look at him. “You know you want to!”</p><p>El stood there, in shock. She’d seen the Doctor get angry with the people on the Starship UK because of the Star Whale, but this?</p><p>This was an entirely different kind of scary.</p><p>“I must protest!” Bracewell insisted.</p><p>“What are you waiting for!?” The Doctor demanded of the Ironside. “You hate me, look!” He tauntingly pounded his chest. “You hate me! You want to kill me!” He swung again. “KILL ME!” He roared, shouting into the eyestalk.</p><p>“Doctor…” El tried to grab him.</p><p>“PLEASE DESIST FROM STRIKING ME.” The Ironside requested. “I AM YOUR SOL-DIER.”</p><p>“YOU! ARE! MY! ENEMY!” The Doctor screamed back, punctuating each word with a swing of the spanner. “And I am yours!” He stood there, seething. “You are everything I despise… The worst thing, in all of creation. I’ve defeated you time and time again, I’ve defeated you. I sent you back into the void. I saved the whole of reality from you! I am the Doctor… and you are the Daleks!” He named, kicking the automaton, sending it rolling back into the desk.</p><p>Churchill, Bracewell, and El looked on, confused, fearful.</p><p>The Ironside’s eyestalk turned around, focusing on the Doctor. “…CORRECT!” It slid back to the center of the room, focusing on its counterpart by the entryway. “REVIEW TESTIMONY!”</p><p><em>“I am the Doctor…” </em>The Doctor’s statement was replayed aloud. <em>“and you are the Daleks!”</em></p><p>“Testimony?” The Doctor looked between the two Daleks. “What testimony!?”</p><p>“TRANSMITTING TESTIMONY NOW.”</p><p>“Transmit what,” The Doctor demanded. “Where?”</p><p>The Daleks did not respond. “TESTIMONY ACCEPTED!”</p><p>“Marines!” Churchill bellowed. “Marines! Get in here!” He ordered.</p><p>The Dalek by the door turned, as two British Marines came sprinting in. One of the poor men was stood right by the Dalek and the Dalek shoved its sucker-arm right into his face. The man screamed, as his skull cracked and was crushed under the force of the suction.</p><p>The other Dalek fired its beam weapon, the other Marine’s skeleton glowing through as he screamed, and collapsed to the ground, before he could even fire a shot.</p><p>“Stop it!” Bracewell shouted, grabbing the Daleks’ attention. “Stop it, please! What are you doing!? You are my Ironsides!”</p><p>“WE ARE THE DALEKS!”</p><p>“But I created you!” Bracewell insisted.</p><p>“NO.” The Dalek replied, shooting at Bracewell.</p><p>The man’s hand was blown off, and everyone in the room gasped, as it began to spark, wires and metal framing becoming exposed.</p><p>Bracewell was an android.</p><p>“WE CREATED YOU.” The Dalek proclaimed, as Bracewell stared down at his hand, shaking in his boots. “VICTORY! VICTORY! VICTORY!” The Daleks chanted, before disappearing in flashes of light.</p><p>Churchill looked to the Doctor for an explanation.</p><p>“Doctor…” El looked up at him, shaking. “What happened?”</p><p>“I wanted to know what they wanted…” The Doctor answered, staring ahead. “What their plan was.” He shook his head. “Their plan was me.” He glanced at El, suddenly breaking off into a sprint.</p><p>“Doctor!” El shouted, watching as the Doctor charged back through the corridors of the cabinet war rooms.</p><p>–––––––––––</p><p>“Testimony accepted?” The Doctor muttered, taking large strides back towards the TARDIS.</p><p>“You were right.” El said, standing behind the Time Lord as he unlocked the ship. “What now? Chase them?”</p><p>“I do, yeah.” The Doctor replied, pushing the door open.</p><p>“No!”</p><p>The Doctor turned to her. “El, listen-“</p><p>“Stayed behind when you went to the bad place, not staying behind now!”</p><p>“El, listen to me,” The Doctor bent down slightly, to look her in the eye. “The Daleks are evil, the single most evil creatures in all the universe. They don’t take prisoners, and they will <em>not </em>hesitate to harm a child. Now, I’ll be fine if something happened, but if something happened to you…” He looked down, swallowing, before standing back straight. “Winston,” He pointed, “Watch my kid.”</p><p>“Of course, Doctor.” Churchill replied.</p><p>The Time Lord nodded, and the two watched as he went back into the TARDIS, the box disappearing in a pulsating light, the storeroom it had landed in becoming entirely empty.</p><p>“…what do we do now?” El asked, staring at the spot where the TARDIS had just been.</p><p>“KBO, of course.” Churchill answered.</p><p>El looked at him inquisitively.</p><p>“Keep Buggering On!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor pulled back a lever, darting to the other side of the console, where the monitor was hanging. The Time Lord flicked the switch, activating the screen, and looked as the readouts came back.</p><p>There was something hiding behind the moon. Something massive…</p><p>A Dalek starship.</p><p>“Bingo!” The Doctor snapped his fingers in satisfaction, throwing the controls to take the TARDIS on board.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Prime Minister!” Breen, the lady from before, came running in, holding a sheet of paper.</p><p>Churchill turned away from where he was helping El get sat down with a cup of tea (they were going to make an Englishman out of her yet!), to the woman. “Yes?”</p><p>“Signal from RDF, sir.” She explained, handing it over. “Unidentified object. Hanging in the sky, Captain Childers says. We can’t get a fix, though. Too high up.”</p><p>Churchill frowned. “What do you think, Miss El?” He turned to the girl. “The Doctor is in trouble, and now we know where he is!”</p><p>El gasped in realization. “It’s a spaceship! He’ll be on it!”</p><p>Churchill pointed proudly. “Exactly!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“How about that cuppa now, then?” The Doctor asked, walking straight into the heart of the Dalek vessel.</p><p>The entire place looked beaten, battered. It had been repaired, yes, but the room he was in now looked more human-like in construction, rather than Dalek.</p><p>They had been there for a long while, probably had to repair the place with materials of Earth origin.</p><p>“IT IS THE DOCTOR!” The bronze colored Dalek announced, the three of them turning around. “EXTERMINATE!”</p><p>“Whoa, whoa! I wouldn’t, if I were you!” The Doctor quickly reached into his pocket, pulling out a circular, pale beige object, a red splotch in the middle. “TARDIS self-destruct. You know what that means, my ship goes, all of you go with it.”</p><p>“YOU WOULD NOT USE SUCH A DEVICE!” The Dalek still in Ironside getup on the far right tried to call the Doctor’s bluff.</p><p>“Try me.” The Doctor retorted. The Dalek, also still disguised, began moving forward. “Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah! No scans, no nothing!” He protested, stopping the Dalek in its tracks. “Or I destroy us all in an instant. TARDIS bang-bang, Daleks boom!” The Dalek moved back, and the Doctor smiled tauntingly. “Good boy.”</p><p>The Doctor began walking around, further examining his surroundings. “This ship’s pretty beaten up…” He began, walking behind the Dalek console. “Running on empty, I’d say, like you. When we last met, you were at the end of your rope, finished.” The Medusa Cascade…</p><p>The Daleks had returned in force, the strength of an empire, and sought to end all reality. They had almost succeeded, too. The Doctor stopped them, but at a terrible cost…</p><p>But evidently, there was a group that survived. They always survived.</p><p>“ONE SHIP SURVIVED.” The lead Dalek confirmed.</p><p>“And you fell through time, yes, yes.” The Doctor nodded. “Crippled… but alive.”</p><p>“WE DETECTED A TRACE.” The Dalek explained. “ONE OF THE PROGENITOR DEVICES.”</p><p>The Doctor tilted his head. “Progenitor? And what’s that when it’s at home?”</p><p>“IT IS OUR PAST.” The Dalek on the far right stated. “AND OUR FUTURE.”</p><p>“That’s deep.” The Doctor granted. “I will give that to you, that is deep for a Dalek. What does it <em>mean </em>though?”</p><p>“IT CONTAINS PURE DALEK DNA.” The leader explained. “THOUSANDS WERE CREATED, SCATTERED ACROSS THE UNIVERSE. ALL WERE LOST. SAVE ONE.”</p><p>“Okay,” The Doctor held up a finger, “There’s still one thing, I don’t get though. If you’ve got the Progenitor, why build Bracewell?”</p><p>“IT WAS… NECESSARY.”</p><p>“But why?” The Doctor pressed. He glanced, eyebrows furrowed, until suddenly… “I get it.” He smiled. “I get it! Oho!” He laughed. “This is rich!” He pointed. “Your group of Daleks, from the Cascade... It didn’t recognize you as ‘pure’ Dalek.”</p><p>“A SOLUTION WAS DEVISED.”</p><p>“Yes, yes, yes.” The Doctor huffed. “A testimony, my testimony. So you, set up a trap.” He began pacing, “The Progenitor would recognize the authority of the Daleks’ greatest enemy, my authority.” One of the Daleks moved over to the console, interfacing to it with its manipulator arm. “No, no, no! What are you doing?” He demanded, flashing the TARDIS self-destruct.</p><p>“LEAVE NOW.” The Lead Dalek demanded. “OR THE CITY DIES IN FLAMES!”</p><p>The Doctor scoffed. “Who are you kidding? This ship is a wreck! You don’t have the power to destroy London.”</p><p>“WATCH,” The Dalek ordered, “AS THE HUMANS DESTROY THEMSELVES!”</p><p>The Doctor inhaled sharply. World War II, dead in the middle of the London blitz…</p><p>London would light up, becoming a massive target for the Nazis.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“The generators won’t switch off!” The man standing over by the switch reported, horrified.</p><p>“The lights are on all over London, Prime Minister!”</p><p>“I don’t understand,” El looked over to Churchill, “What’s so bad about the lights?”</p><p>“You see, young lady,” Churchill replied, “The Nazis prefer to make their bombing runs at night. But, by turning off every light in the city, we deny them the target!”</p><p>“But the lights are on now…” El recognized, looking back at the map. “It’s the… Dah-leks.”</p><p>“The Germans can see every inch of the city, we’re sitting ducks! Get those lights out,” He turned to an officer at the other side, “before the Germans get here!”</p><p>El stood, looking around at the busy room. The mix of fear coming off of all the people was thick enough for even a non-psychic to sense… but El could feel each person’s like it was her own, and over the course of her life, she didn’t think she’d felt such strong fear from any other person before.</p><p>“Thousands will die if we don’t get those lights out now!” Churchill shouted.</p><p>“German bombers, sighted over the channel, sir.” Breen reported, looking to the Prime Minister. “ETA ten minutes, sir.”</p><p>Churchill drew a breath. “Here they come…” He pushed off the map. “Get a message to Mister Atlee! War Cabinet meeting at 0300 hours! …if we’re all still here.”</p><p>“We have to do something.” El looked up at the Prime Minister.</p><p>Churchill shook his head. “None of our weapons are a match for theirs.”</p><p>El frowned. There had to be something. The Daleks were hiding for a month, the people in the bunker had to have picked up something from them. Weapons, defenses, the Daleks had to have left-</p><p>Oh.</p><p>“Oh!” El shouted aloud., turning to Churchill. “Bracewell!”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Turn those lights off.” The Doctor growled. “Turn those lights off, <em>now.</em> Turn them off, or I swear, I will use the TARDIS self-destruct!”</p><p>“STALEMATE, DOCTOR.” The Dalek replied. “LEAVE US, AND RETURN TO EARTH.”</p><p>“Oh, that’s it?” He rhetorically asked. “That’s your great plan? Leave?”</p><p>“EXTINCTION IS NOT AN OPTION.” The Dalek on the far right answered. “WE WILL RETURN TO OUR OWN TIME.”</p><p>“No, no, no!” The Doctor spat. “I won’t let you escape again, I won’t!”</p><p>An electrical zapping echoed throughout the room, and the Doctor looked, to the large, cylindrical chamber behind the Daleks.</p><p>A slow, mechanical beating began to sound, speeding up. A Dalek heartbeat.</p><p>“WE HAVE SUCCEEDED!”</p><p>“DNA RECONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETE!”</p><p>“BEHOLD, DOCTOR,” The Lead Dalek spoke, as it and its subordinates moved out of the way of chamber. “THE NEW DALEK PARADIGM!”</p><p>The chamber began to glow a hellish red, as the door carved into it slid open, smoke billowing out as it sparked.</p><p>A Dalek, different to the others, emerged. It was larger, more rounded, standing tall. The eyestalk appeared to be more organic, and the Dalek itself looked to be more streamlined. It was colored a gunmetal grey and slid to a stop in front of the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor fought budding horror, as more Daleks like it emerged from the chamber, all identical in build, but colored differently. One was a maroon, another a deep blue, the third a shining gold, and the last an almost black color.</p><p>“THE PROGENITOR HAS FULFILLED OUR NEW DESTINY!” The old Dalek proclaimed. “BEHOLD, THE RESTORATION OF THE DALEKS!”</p><p>“THE RESURRECTION OF THE MASTER RACE!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Victory of the Daleks</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Bracewell,” Churchill came striding into the lab, “Put the gun down!” He ordered, as Bracewell loaded a revolver, shaking.</p><p>“My entire life is a lie…” Bracewell swallowed, looking at the gun. “And I choose to end it.”</p><p>“No.” El, threw her hand out, the gun being yanked out of Bracewell’s grip, flying into her hand. Churchill and Bracewell looked at the little girl, shocked. “Need your help.”</p><p>“B-But those creatures…” Bracewell stuttered. “My Ironsides… <em>they </em>made<em> me?</em> I can remember things! So many things! The last war! The squalor, the mud… and the awful, awful misery of it all.”</p><p>El tilted her head, looking on. Bracewell may not have been made of flesh and blood… but he was thinking, <em>feeling, </em>she could sense it from him.</p><p>“What am I?” Bracewell asked. “What am I?”</p><p>“What you are, sir,” Churchill pointed, “Is either on our side, or theirs! Now, I don’t give a <em>damn </em>if you’re a machine, Bracewell… are you a <em>man?</em>”</p><p>“I understand…” El spoke up, looking at Bracewell. “Was made to do… bad things. But I don’t now. Because I don’t want to. You don’t have to do bad things either. You can help.”</p><p>“I can?” Bracewell asked.</p><p>“Daleks made you. You understand them.” El said. “You said ‘gravity bubbles.’ Fight them in space.”</p><p>“By Jove, she’s got it!” Churchill breathed. “A missile, or a fighter craft, perhaps?”</p><p>“Th-Theoretically, it is possible to send something into space.” Bracewell stammered, considering the notion.</p><p>“Bracewell,” Churchill addressed, “It’s time to think <em>big!</em>”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“ALL HAIL THE NEW DALEKS.” The Daleks that had been hiding on Earth chanted. “ALL HAIL THE NEW DALEKS.”</p><p>“YES.” The grey Dalek turned to the old ones, speaking an a deep, almost growling voice. “YOU ARE INFERIOR.”</p><p>“YES.” The old Daleks accepted.</p><p>“THEN PREPARE.” The Dalek ordered.</p><p>“WE ARE READY!”</p><p>The dark blue Dalek turned to the old Daleks.</p><p>They were now obsolete. And we all know what happens to obsolete technology.</p><p>“CLEANSE THE UNCLEAN!” The grey Dalek ordered. “TOTAL OBLITERATION! DISINTEGRATE!”</p><p>The Blue Dalek’s weapons platform rotated around, the standard gunstick armament being switched out with a heavy cannon stored in the Dalek’s casing. The cannon fired, the three old Daleks hailing the new models with raised gunsticks, before they were all destroyed in aqua fire.</p><p>The Doctor looked upon this scene and balked. “Blimey. What do you do to the ones who mess up?”</p><p>The Supreme Dalek began moving towards the Time Lord. “YOU ARE THE DOCTOR! YOU ARE THE ENEMY OF THE DALEKS! YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!”</p><p>The Doctor scowled, presenting the TARDIS self-destruct. “Don’t mess with me, sweetheart.” He growled.</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“More Nazi bombers, approaching in strike formation!” </em>A man announced over the loudspeaker, the bunker rumbling, the lights flickering as the bombardment continued.</p><p>El looked up, trying to steady her breathing.</p><p><em>“Incendiary bombs have hit the East End.” </em>The announcer reported.</p><p>“At last!” Churchill and El looked over, as Bracewell came running in, pushing a chair with a heavy electronic device sat in it. “Are they ready!?”</p><p>“I hope so.” Bracewell replied, wearing a headset, fiddling with the controls on the device. “But in the meantime,” He grunted, sitting the device on the table, hitting it, trying to get the screen to turn on. “This will pick up Dalek transmissions!”</p><p>The screen cleared, and El gasped, as she saw the Doctor, standing in front of the Dalek Supreme.</p><p>
  <em>“BEHOLD, THE NEW PARIDIGM OF THE DALEK RACE.”</em>
</p><p>“It’s the Doctor!” El happily looked on it.</p><p>
  <em>“SCIENTIST, STRATEGIST, DRONE, ETERNAL, AND THE SUPREME!”</em>
</p><p><em>“Which would be you, I’m guessing.” </em>The Doctor pointed at it, up and down.<em> “Nice new paintjob, I like it, makes it easy to tell you lot apart.”</em></p><p>“…Hurry.” El swallowed, turning to Churchill. “We have to hurry.”</p><p>The phone rang, and Bracewell instantly answered it. “Yes? Right, right thanks.” He slammed it back down on the hook, turning to Churchill. “Ready when you are, Prime Minister.”</p><p>“Splendid!” Churchill bellowed.</p><p>Bracewell looked to the scanner, turning a dial at the bottom, a side-view of the Dalek flying saucer being displayed in green. “Spacecraft’s exact coordinates located!”</p><p>“Go to it, Group Captain!” Churchill turned to the man. “Go to it!”</p><p>“Broadsword to Danny Boy,” The Group Captain spoke into a headset, “Broadsword to Danny Boy! Scramble! Scramble! Scramble!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Question is,” The Doctor continued, staring down the Daleks, “What do we do now?” He furiously pointed. “Either you turn off your clever machine, or I’ll blow you and your new Paradigm into eternity!”</p><p>“AND YOURSELF.” The Supreme, the lead grey Dalek, retorted.</p><p>“Occupational hazard!” The Doctor shot back.</p><p>The Blue Dalek, the strategist, began advancing on the Doctor, speaking in a high-pitched, scratchy voice. “SCAN REVEALS NOTHING! TARDIS SELF-DESTRUCT NON-EXISTENT!”</p><p>“All right!” The Doctor took a bite out of it, “It’s a Jammie Dodger, but I was promised tea!”</p><p>An alarm began to sound, and the gold Dalek, the Eternal, turned to the console. “ALERT!” It sounded in a slow speaking, pausing voice. “PROJECTILE INCOMING!” The other Daleks turned their attention to the screen, allowing the Doctor to run over to another console across the room, looking at it. “CORRECTON! MULTIPLE PROJECTILES!”</p><p>“WHAT HAVE THE HUMANS DONE?” The Supreme demanded, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor replied, eyes wide as he swallowed the last bit of his biscuit.</p><p>“EXPLAIN!” The Supreme commanded. “EXPLAIN! EXPLAIN!”</p><p><em>“Danny Boy to the Doctor,” </em>A voice suddenly cut in through the ship’s announcement system, <em>“Danny Boy to the Doctor! Are you receiving me? Over.”</em></p><p>The Doctor laughed, pushing away from the terminal. “Ha ha! Winston, you beauty!”</p><p>Three British spitfires, being supported by Bracewell’s gravity bubble technology, came flying out of Earth’s atmosphere, towards the Dalek ship.</p><p>
  <em>“Danny Boy to the Doctor, come in, over.”</em>
</p><p>“Loud and clear, Danny Boy!” The Doctor replied gladly, uncaring that the Daleks were right there. “Big dish! Side of the ship! Blow it up! …over.” He then broke into a sprint.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR!” The Dalek Supreme ordered, as the Doctor sprinted for the TARDIS.</p><p>The Time Lord ducked and bobbed, the shots narrowly missing him, before he dove into his ship, slamming the doors behind him.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You heard him, Group Captain!” Churchill uttered powerfully. “Target that dish! Give it all we’ve got!”</p><p>The Group Captain nodded, speaking into the headset. “Broadsword to Danny Boy, target the dish and stop that signal, over.”</p><p>
  <em>“Understood, sir. Over. You can count on us, over.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>-----------</em>
</p><p>“Okay, chaps,” Danny Boy directed to the two spitfires flying behind him, Earth far below, stars twinkling outside their cockpits. “Let’s put London back under cover of darkness. Tally-ho!”</p><p>The three spitfires began to fire, red bolts of light shooting out from where the guns should’ve been, as the Daleks returned fire.</p><p>“Cover my flank!” Danny Boy ordered, as they flew underneath the saucer. “I’m going in close!”</p><p>A blast from one of the cannons hit one of the spitfires at the rear, the modified aircraft disintegrating into nothing.</p><p>Danny Boy sighed. “We’ve lost Jubilee, sir, over.”</p><p>–––––––––––</p><p>“Beam’s still active, sir.” The Group Captain reported.</p><p>“Send them in again!” Churchill ordered.</p><p>The group watched, as the spitfires did a loop around the alien vessel, coming back around to the underside, before one of the dots on the monitor vanished.</p><p><em>“Flintlock’s down, sir.” </em>Danny Boy reported. <em>“Dish seems to be protected, over.”</em></p><p>------------</p><p>“SHIELDS INTACT.” The Scientist Dalek, the black colored one, reported. “PULSE STILL ACTIVE.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor stood, hearts racing, as he leaned against the railing on the console platform.</p><p><em>“Danny Boy to the Doctor. Only me left now, sir.” </em>The Briton radioed. <em>“Is there anything you can do, sir? Over.”</em></p><p>The Doctor sighed, shaking his head as he moved over to the console. He had a plan, but… it might be a longshot.</p><p>“The Doctor to Danny Boy,” The Time Lord grabbed a small microphone off the console, and spoke into it, “The Doctor to Danny Boy.” The Doctor rubbed his forehead frustratedly. “I can disrupt the Daleks’ forcefield, but not for long. Over.”</p><p>
  <em>“Good show, Doctor. Go to it. Over.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor sighed dropping the microphone. They were going to get themselves killed, and it was his fault. Shaking his head, the Doctor quickly began to fiddle with the controls on the console.</p><p>
  <em>“I’m going in again, over.”</em>
</p><p>-----------</p><p>“SHIELDS DEACTIVATED!” The Scientist screeched in alarm, as the alert klaxons began to sound.</p><p>The ship rocked, sparking, as the lights flickered.</p><p>“ENERGY PULSE DESTROYED!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Direct hit, sir!” The Group Captain reported, the room erupting into cheers.</p><p>“We did it!” El laughed</p><p>-----------</p><p>“The Doctor to Danny Boy,” The Time Lord radioed, “The Doctor to Danny Boy. Destroy this ship!” He commanded, “Over!”</p><p>
  <em>“What about you, sir?”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor chuckled knowingly, looking at the moving time rotor in the center of the console. “I’ll be okay.”</p><p>The screen over by the doors activated, showing the Supreme Dalek.</p><p><em>“DOCTOR.” </em>The Dalek addressed. <em>“YOU WILL CEASE YOUR ATTACK!”</em></p><p>“What?” The Doctor huffed, throwing the microphone to the side. “And let you lot scuttle off back to the future?” He rhetorically asked, stepping closer to the screen. “No fear. This is the end for you.” He growled, leaning on the railing. “The final end.”</p><p>The Daleks had gotten away, been given the chance to rebuild and resume their crusade against the universe.</p><p>Never again.</p><p><em>“CALL OFF THE ATTACK, OR WE WILL DESTROY THE EARTH!” </em>The Supreme threatened, glaring at the Doctor through the screen.</p><p>The Doctor laughed ruefully. “I’m not stupid, mate. You just played your last card.”</p><p>
  <em>“BRACEWELL IS A BOMB.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor froze, stiffening. “You’re bluffing. Deception is second nature to you. There isn’t a sincere bone in your body. There isn’t a… bone in your body period, come to think of it.”</p><p><em>“THE ANDROID IS POWERED VIA AN OBLIVION CONTINUUM.” </em>The Dalek explained. “<em>CALL OFF THE ATTACK, OR WE WILL RUPTURE THE CONTAINMENT FIELD!”</em></p><p>“No!” The Doctor turned back to the console monitor, flicking the switch to send the feed to it. “This is my best chance! The last of the Daleks, I can rid the universe of you once and for all!”</p><p><em>“THEN DO IT.” </em>The Supreme Dalek replied. <em>“BUT WE WILL SHATTER THE PLANET BELOW. THE PLANET WILL DIE SCREAMING!”</em></p><p>“And if I let you go… you’ll be stronger than ever.” The Time Lord stared. “A new race of Daleks.”</p><p><em>“THEN CHOOSE, DOCTOR.” </em>The Supreme Dalek commanded. <em>“DEATH TO THE DALEKS… OR SALVATION TO THE EARTH! BEGIN COUNTDOWN OF OBLIVION CONTINUUM.” </em>The Dalek ordered its subordinates. <em>“CHOOSE, DOCTOR! CHOOSE! CHOOSE!”</em></p><p>The Doctor swallowed and forced himself to turn off the monitor. There was only one reasonable choice he could make.</p><p>“The Doctor to Danny Boy, the Doctor to Danny Boy…” He closed his eyes, knowing that there would come a day where he would regret speaking his next words. “Withdraw.”</p><p>
  <em>“Say again, sir?”</em>
</p><p>“Withdraw!” The Doctor repeated. “Return to Earth! Over and out!”</p><p>
  <em>“But sir-“</em>
</p><p>“There’s no time, we have to get back to Earth, now.” The Doctor cut him off. “Over and out.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The group in the war room stood, looking at the scanner, when suddenly, the Doctor came sprinting in, knocking Bracewell to the floor with an uppercut.</p><p>“Doctor!” El shouted, looking at the man, shocked.</p><p>“Ow!” The Doctor shook the pain out of his hand. “Sorry, Professor!” He apologized, looking down at Bracewell. “You’re a bomb! An inconceivably massive, Dalek bomb!”</p><p>Bracewell spluttered, looking up. “What?”</p><p>“An oblivion continuum, that’s what powers you.” The Doctor rushed through the explanation. “Captured wormhole, but if the containment field ruptures, it creates an explosion powerful enough to reduce the Earth to nothing more than <em>dust!</em>” He crouched down next to the other man, ripping his shirt open, exposing his chest. “Now, keep down…” He ordered, activating the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>Bracewell’s chest split open, skin folding away, to reveal a metal underlayer, a circle split into five glowing segments in his sternum.</p><p>One of the segments turned yellow.</p><p>El moved to the Doctor’s side. “Well?”</p><p>“I don’t know, I don’t know!” The Doctor frantically replied, as the yellow segment turned red, and the next segment in clockwise sequence began turning yellow. He looked over the screwdriver readouts. “I’ve never seen an oblivion continuum up close before…”</p><p>“Um…” El anxiously looked to the glowing part of Bracewell’s chest, feeling the man’s terror. “What happens when they all turn red?”</p><p>“He goes, and the Earth goes with him.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“It’s incredible,” Churchill spluttered, “He talked to us about his memories, the Great War!”</p><p>“Someone else’s stolen thoughts.” The Doctor pointed. “Implanted in a positronic brain.” He tossed the sonic screwdriver between his hands. He suddenly snapped his finger, pointing at Bracewell. “Tell me about it, Bracewell! Tell me about your life!”</p><p>“Doctor, I really don’t think this is the time.” Bracewell replied.</p><p>“Tell me, and prove you’re human.” The Doctor said. “Tell me everything.”</p><p>“My family ran the post shop…” Bracewell began, confused. “It was a little place, just near the abbey. By the ash trees. Used to be eight trees, but there was a storm…”</p><p>The Doctor gestured frustratedly, as the second section hit red. “Your parents!” He requested. “Tell me about them!”</p><p>“Good people, kind people…” Bracewell answered. “They died, of course. Scarlet fever.”</p><p><em>‘Good! Good! There’s something I can work with!’ </em>“What was that like?” The Doctor asked. “How did that feel?”</p><p>“Oh, please…” Bracewell stared up.</p><p>“How did it make you <em>feel, </em>Edwin?” The Doctor pressed. “Tell me! Tell me now!”</p><p>“Oh, it hurt.” Bracewell answered, tearing up. “It hurt, Doctor. It hurt so badly… It was like a wound. I thought it was worse than a wound, like I’d been emptied out… there was nothing.”</p><p>El choked up, feeling the man’s grief, as the third section became red, the fourth one beginning to change.</p><p>“Good, Edwin, remember it now!” The Doctor pressed. “Remember the post office, and the ash trees, and your mum and dad, and losing them, and the men in the trenches you saw die!” He snapped his fingers. “Remember it! Feel it! You feel it because you’re human! You’re not like them, you’re not like the Daleks!”</p><p>“It hurts, Doctor…” Bracewell cried. “It hurts.”</p><p>“Good! Good! Good!” The Doctor replied. “Brilliant! Embrace it! That means you’re alive! They cannot explode that bomb because you are a human being! You are flesh and blood! They cannot explode that bomb, believe it! You are Professor Edwin Bracewell, and you are a human being!”</p><p>The fourth section went solid red, and the fifth began to change.</p><p>“It’s not working.” The Doctor breathed with horror. “I can’t stop it.”</p><p>“Hey.” El suddenly crouched down next to Bracewell. “Ever meet someone special?”</p><p>Bracewell looked to the child in confusion. “What?”</p><p>“Someone nice.” El continued. “When no one else was.”</p><p>Bracewell’s eyes glossed over, as the fifth section, a deep orange, began to lighten.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened, and he looked at El. Oh…</p><p>
  <em>Oh!</em>
</p><p>He knew what she was doing! Pain only hurt, made Bracewell subconsciously wish to succumb to the continuum, but the good memories, they reinforced his desire to live!</p><p>“Someone… who saved you.”</p><p>“Oh, I…” Bracewell softly replied. “I shouldn’t talk about her.”</p><p>“Her.” El repeated, looking at the Doctor.</p><p>“What was her name?” The Doctor asked, picking up from El, looking down at Bracewell.</p><p>Bracewell remained silent for a moment, before a fond smile overtook his features. “Dorabella…”</p><p>“Dorabella?” The Doctor incredulously repeated, earning a look courtesy of El. “Is a beautiful name!” He quickly amended.”</p><p>“Who was she?” El asked.</p><p>“She was…” Edwin reflected. “Everything. All the others used to be so cruel to me… except her. She was always so kind… Her eyes were blue, almost violet.” He remembered, as the fourth section began to revert. “Like the last touch of sunset… on the edge of the world.” The longing for days long since past were practically visible, as he looked up at the ceiling. “Dorabella…”</p><p>‘The last three sections all reverted at once, the oblivion continuum returning to a calm, pale blue.</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Welcome to the human race.” He then snapped his fingers and pointed at Churchill. “You’re brilliant!” He then pointed to Bracewell. “You’re brilliant!” Then, the Doctor looked at El. “And you…” He laughed, pulling the girl into a hug. “Now!” He released her. “Got to stop them!” He said, dashing away. “Got to stop the Daleks!”</p><p>“Wait, Doctor!” Bracewell called. “It’s too late… Gone. They’ve gone.”</p><p>“No! No!” The Doctor shouted. “They can’t have gotten away from me again!”</p><p>“No, I can feel it.” Bracewell straightened his spectacles. “My mind is clear. The Daleks have gone.”</p><p>The Doctor exhaled in horror, leaning on the pillar.</p><p>El walked up to him, looking at him, confused. “But… we stopped the bomb.”</p><p>“They knew…” The Doctor breathed. “They knew I would choose the Earth. They won… The Daleks won.”</p><p>El tilted her head, reaching out mentally. She felt the Doctor’s emotions, the anger at the Daleks, the regret…</p><p>And pulled him into another hug, despite her small stature relative to him.</p><p>“Okay.” El told him. “You will be okay.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, despite the stinging of the fresh loss against the Daleks. “Yes… Yes, I suppose I will.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So…” El looked to Churchill. “What now?”</p><p>Churchill chuckled. “I still have a war to run, miss El.”</p><p>“Prime Minister,” A woman passed over a sheet of paper to him.</p><p>Churchill huffed in exasperation. “Oh, they’ve hit the Palace, and Saint Paul’s again! Fire crews only just saved it.”</p><p>Across the way, Breen suddenly broke down into tears.</p><p>“Mister Churchill,” El addressed, “Is she going to be okay?”</p><p>“Hm?” Churchill looked up. “Oh, Miss Breen… Her young man didn’t make it, I’m afraid. Shot down over the channel.”</p><p>El slowly nodded. “Where’s Doctor?”</p><p>“Tying up loose ends!” The Time Lord suddenly arrived. “Took out all that alien tech Bracewell put in.”</p><p>Churchill let out a sigh. “Won’t you reconsider, Doctor? Those Spitfires would win me the war in 24 hours!”</p><p>“Exactly.” The Doctor replied, taking a sip of tea.</p><p>“But why not?” Churchill demanded. “Why can’t we put an <em>end </em>to this misery?”</p><p>“Oh, it doesn’t work like that, Winston.” The Doctor replied. “It’s gonna be tough. There are terrible days to come.” He sat the cup of tea down. “The darkest days… but you can do it! You know you can.”</p><p>“Stay with us and help us win this war through!” Churchill pleaded. “The world needs you.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled sadly, a haunted look behind his eyes. “I’ve seen enough war in my life… and the world doesn’t need me.”</p><p>Churchill looked shocked. “No?”</p><p>“The world’s got Winston Spencer Churchill!” The Doctor pointed proudly.</p><p>Churchill laughed, as the Doctor held up a v for victory. “It’s been a pleasure, Doctor. As always!” He held out his arms.</p><p>“Too right!” The Doctor agreed, pulling the Prime Minister in for a hug.</p><p>“Goodbye, Doctor!” Churchill said.</p><p>“Shall we say adieu?” The Doctor asked, pulling back.</p><p>“Indeed.” Churchill nodded. He turned to El, bowing slightly. “Farewell, Miss El.”</p><p>“Goodbye.” El replied.</p><p>Churchill flashed both of them a smile, before turning to walk.</p><p>El frowned, sensing a flash of mischievousness from Churchill… the same feeling she’d gotten upon their arrival. “Hey.” She called, causing the imposing man to turn around. She held out her hand. “Key.”</p><p>The Doctor coughed, spitting out a bit of tea, as he patted frantically at his pockets.</p><p>“Oho!” Churchill laughed, walking back over, key in hand. “Very observant child of yours, Doctor!” He passed the Time Lord the key back and shook his fist. “KBO.”</p><p>The two watched, as the legendary British Prime Minister walked off, a war that still had to be won waiting for him.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor and El walked into Bracewell’s lab, the android stood over his desk, staring into the distance.</p><p>“I’ve been expecting you, Doctor.” Bracewell said upon their arrival, sounding choked up. “I knew this moment had to come.”</p><p>The Doctor furrowed his eyebrows. “Moment?”</p><p>Bracewell sniffed. “It’s time to deactivate me…” He slowly turned about.</p><p>“Is it?” The Doctor asked. “Oh… uh…” He glanced at El. “Yeah.”</p><p>“You have no choice.” Bracewell said. “I’m Dalek technology. Can’t allow me to go pottering on around down here where I have no business.”</p><p>“No, you’re,” The Doctor nodded. “Dead right, professor. One hundred percent right. And,” He turned to El, “By the time I get back here in, what, ten minutes?”</p><p>El frowned. “Don’t know.”</p><p>“Fifteen minutes,” The Doctor amended, “Yes, in fifteen minutes, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. You are going to be <em>so</em> deactivated. It’s going to be like you were never even activated.”</p><p>“…fifteen minutes?” Bracewell repeated.</p><p>“More like twenty,” The Doctor amended again, “Just realized El doesn’t really know a lot about how to tell time, or numbers, or how to read or spell, I’m going to have to fix those. But once I take care of that,” The Doctor said, “We, uh, we… the…” He turned to Bracewell. “See?”</p><p>Bracewell nodded. “Very well, Doctor. I shall wait here, and, um, prepare myself.”</p><p>El blinked. He still wasn’t getting it. “Going to be long.”</p><p>“Easily!” The Doctor agreed. “So, no running off. Don’t go trying to find that little post office by the ash trees, or that girl, what was her name?”</p><p>“Dorabella.”</p><p>“Dorabella.” The Doctor repeated. “On no account go trying to look for her. Mind you… you can get a lot done in half an hour.”</p><p>Bracewell slowly smiled and began to laugh as it hit him.</p><p>“Hey! We got there!” The Doctor high-fived El, the girl looking confused as she didn’t really understand.</p><p>“Thank you!” Bracewell beamed. “Thank you, Doctor!”</p><p>The Doctor turned to El. “Come along, El.”</p><p>Bracewell watched, smiling as the two time travelers departed the room, and began frantically packing his bags.</p><p>He had a girl to find.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So, Daleks… bad people?” El asked, following the Doctor back to the TARDIS.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Yeah… really bad people.” He said, shutting the door behind her, walking up to the console.</p><p>“But… why?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor shot her a look as he set the controls. “What do you mean, why?”</p><p>“Why do you hate them?”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. Leave it to the psychic to read him like an open book, despite the defenses he’d built up for himself.</p><p>“Remember earlier, when I told Winston I’d seen enough wars…” He sat down on the steps, looking at El. “It was them. The Daleks. My people went to war with them, and by the end of it… I was the only one left.” He swallowed, drew a breath, and stood back up. “Now,” He set the TARDIS into motion, “I wonder if there’s a room around here we can use as a classroom space…”</p><p>----------</p><p>And as the TARDIS dematerialized once more, nobody noticed a crack, identical in shape to the one that had been on the Starship UK, appear in the storeroom, glowing faintly…</p>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Wandering the TARDIS</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“What are we doing?” El asked, as the Doctor led her through the corridors of the TARDIS. The ship was on autopilot, aimlessly drifting through the time vortex.</p><p>“Well, I’d figured since we got that mess with the Starship UK sorted out, and took care of Winston’s little problem, now might be a good time to get you settled in properly.” The Doctor explained, taking a right, “Careful of the grav-lift.” He pointed to the hexagonal hole in the floor, sidestepping it.</p><p>El followed his example. “Settled in?”</p><p>“Yeah.” The Doctor answered. “You have a room and all, yes, but since you decided to come with me, that means the TARDIS is your home now. Which means we’re going to have to start thinking about your education.” He glanced at the girl, as he came to a stop in front of the chosen door. “I wasn’t kidding when I told Bracewell I had to help you fix some things.”</p><p>“Fix?” El repeated self-consciously. “Fine.”</p><p>“I know you think you are, but you’re really not.” The Doctor opened the door, entering the library. An Olympic-sized swimming pool was in the center of the room, multiple floors with bookshelves extending high above. “To start, your English is really broken. I’ve noticed a few times you seem to speak with more comprehension than you should have, the TARDIS picking up the slack most likely, but you can’t rely on her as a crutch all the time, the translation circuits could break, and where would that leave you? Same goes for reading.”</p><p>The two walked around the rim of the pool, up the stairs to the higher levels. The Doctor began looking through the bookshelves, as well as the books.</p><p>“I’ve tutored once.” The Doctor remarked, trying to figure out what level he should start her at.</p><p>“Tu-tored?”</p><p>“Taught.” The Doctor explained. “My granddaughter.”</p><p>El frowned. “Grand-dotter?”</p><p>“The daughter of my daughter.” The Time Lord explained, looking at the book… Hm, college-level English shouldn’t be too difficult, back on Gallifrey they used to teach that in preschool.</p><p>El tilted her head, “But what is daughter?”</p><p>The Doctor looked at El. “I used to be a parent. A dad.” He explained, despite the pain it caused him. Anybody else, he would’ve been evasive, but children had a way of weaseling info out of him like no one else.</p><p>“Parent… mums, dads…” El recalled from the time shortly before the Starship UK.</p><p>“Yeah. There was a little girl I took care of, so she was my daughter.” He explained. “And then, my daughter grew up and had a baby of her own.”</p><p>El slowly nodded. “Granddaughter.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Yeah, you’ve got it.”</p><p>“Name?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor glanced over for a moment. He checked his watch. Yeah, he had time. Despite the mess with the Daleks, it was still before lunchtime. After they had their baths, both of them had clocked out for the night. Maybe that was the real reason why the TARDIS had shown up a month late.</p><p>“Her name was Susan,” The Doctor ushered El into one of the chairs dotted around the library. He sat down on the one across from her and sat the stack he’d been assembling down on the table. “And she was… precious.” He reflected. “So, so precious…”</p><p>El tilted her head, as she listened to the Doctor, absorbing the information like a sponge did water.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The engines hummed, pulsing in tandem with the sound of the time rotor, as the Doctor tended to his faithful ship.</p><p>El had sat and listened to him intently, as the Doctor relayed some of the adventures he’d undertaken at the very beginning, in the company of his granddaughter. Before long, ten minutes became twenty, which became an hour…</p><p>Which turned into the entire afternoon.</p><p>By the end of it, El was struggling to hold her eyes open, and the Doctor had to lead her back to her room by the hand, the TARDIS automatically dimming the lights as they walked.</p><p>After seeing her securely off to dreamland, the Doctor returned to the console room, silent, solemn. In the moment, it had been good fun to regale the little girl with the stories of Susan, some of them even dating back from his days on Gallifrey… but now, after the event…</p><p>It hurt, like he was being stabbed over and over again.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, leaning against the TARDIS console. It wasn’t El’s fault, she couldn’t have known the kind of pain. Then again, maybe she could’ve guessed. She’s sensed the Star Whale, and then Bracewell…</p><p>That was another thing, her powers. Time Lord mental abilities weren’t too different from what El was able to do so far (well, except for the spying), maybe he could help her develop them further.</p><p>The Doctor scoffed at that. Sure, he was able to read the occasional mind, once in a blue moon, if he made actual, physical contact, but he couldn’t even lift a penny that was right in front of him with what telekinetic abilities they had…</p><p>But damn it, he was going to try.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. TIme Lord Fairytales: The Trials of Ivory</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El’s eyebrows knit together, as she sat on the floor, reading the book the Doctor had provided for her. It wasn’t anything <em>too </em>complex, a collection of old Time Lord fairytales the Doctor had grown up with.</p><p>“…the woman did not have a lavish life.” The Doctor read slowly, El mouthing each word as the Doctor read. “She was not rich, or powerful, or especially smarter than anyone else. In fact, she and her sister had barely enough to pay the rent. But, one day, the king sent out word to all the towns in the land. At his castle, he was going to hold a series of trials.”</p><p>“Trials?” El repeated. “Like court?” She asked, recalling an earlier story of the Firebird of Law.</p><p>The Doctor smiled but shook his head. “No, trials in this context means… tests. Like tests of strength, tests of intelligence.”</p><p>“Oh.” El nodded slowly. “Like… Hercules?”</p><p>The Doctor beamed proudly. “Exactly! But the trials the king planned were different,” He turned back to the book, beginning to read from it again, “The king asked his citizens, anyone who was willing to come, to participate. He said, the trials would be dangerous, but for all who made it through, they would receive a prize beyond their wildest imagination…”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor inquisitively. “What kind of prize?”</p><p>“I’m getting to that.” The Doctor answered, turning back to the book. “Rebecca did not want her sister to go to the trials, should she perish because of them, but Ivory knew that whatever the prize was, it could help them to survive the coming winter, so, off she went. Once there, those who chose to undergo the trials were starved for almost a week. The next, they were forced to eat the mind-fish, creatures that would cause them to experience temporary insanity. They were left out in the rain to be struck by lightning, stabbed with all sorts of different needles, and forced to sit in completely blank rooms, by themselves, for days on end.”</p><p>“That’s…” El shivered. “Horrible. Sounds like something a bad person would do.”</p><p>“Right you are, kiddo.” The Doctor turned back to the book. “But, the woman made it through the trials, and for her effort… she received only enough gold to last her the week.”</p><p>El frowned. “Doesn’t sound… fabulous.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to El, beaming proudly. “Hey! You used a new word in the right context!”</p><p>El tilted her head, before smiling herself. “I did!”</p><p>“Yep, after going through all that, the king’s ‘fabulous prize’ was little more than milk money.” The Doctor continued reading. “Ivory was angry, but took what she’d earned, and went back home. But, there was something happening, something unknown to Ivory…”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>The Doctor continued. “Shortly before, a being from the heavens fell to the earth… an angel. The angel lost his memory, he knew not his name, or even where he came from. Ivory found him, took him in, nursed him back to health… and she fell in love with him. The angel returned it, but soon… he found himself being called away.”</p><p>“Why?” El inquired, enraptured now by the story. She didn’t get to read anything like that in the lab.</p><p>The Doctor read. “A Great War in Heaven erupted between the angel’s people, and a terrifying race of demons from the darkest depths of the universe. The angel knew he had to join his brothers in the fight, but before he left, he and his love shared one, final night together… and then, he left. But, unknown to both of them, the angel left his love with child. Thus, when she went to undertake the trials… the child of the angel was growing inside the mother ”</p><p>El gasped. “All those dangerous things, and there was a baby there?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Anyhow… long after the trials had ended, the king had learned that Ivory was pregnant… and of the power that the child would wield. The king grew jealous, but waited, and when the child was born… he stole her away from her mother”</p><p>“Oh, no…”</p><p>“The king kept her locked in the dungeon for many, many years.” The Doctor continued. “Constantly trying to use her to spy on the other kingdoms, to hurt people who threatened his reign. But then, one day… the angel appeared.”</p><p>“The angel? The same one?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “The angel had died during the battle against the demons… but he’d been reborn and was sent falling back down to the earth. There, he found Ivory’s child. His child. He rescued her from the king, and with a group of noble knights, imprisoned the king and his men for what they had done.”</p><p>“What happened to the girl?”</p><p>“The girl’s mother was long gone, so the angel took his child with him.” The Doctor answered. “For you see, even though the girl had been treated so cruelly, she never gave in to despair, and when her father finally returned for her, he’d begun to teach her about her birthright… to explore the far distant stars.” He smiled finally, closing the book, turning to El.</p><p>“Wow…” El looked to the Doctor. “Did all that really happen?”</p><p>“Of course it really happened.” The Doctor answered. “All fairy tales, the Time Lord ones especially, happened somewhere out there, in the wide old universe.”</p><p>“Then can we meet them?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor smiled and winked. “Why not… But, we do have a lesson to continue. Now, what new words did you hear?”</p><p>El paused for a moment. “Dungeon, imprisoned, despair… birthright.</p><p>“Alright, and what do you think these words mean?”</p><p>“Dungeon is…” El began. “A bad place. Where people are kept locked up.”</p><p>“Very good. Next word?”</p><p>“Imprisoned means…” El frowned.</p><p>“Think about the root, prison.”</p><p>“It means they’re locked away?”</p><p>“Great! Next word?”</p><p>“Despair is…” El frowned. “I don’t know.”</p><p>“Despair is like a deep, aching sort of sadness. Got that? Okay, last word, birthright… it means what she was born to do.</p><p>El nodded slowly.</p><p>“Right, now, next story.” The Doctor turned the page. “Oh, it’s a poem! I haven’t read this one in ages!”</p><p>“What is… poem?”</p><p>“It’s a story, but it’s written in a rhythm, like it’s meant to be sung.” The Doctor explained. “You know, like a song without music.”</p><p>“…music?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor looked at the girl, heartstrings being tugged by her confusion. “Yeah… Tell you what, I’ve got whole section of the library blocked off just for music. After we get done here, we can go listen to some, yeah?”</p><p>El nodded, and the Doctor turned back to the book. Skipping the poem, he arrived to the next proper story. “The Legend of the Pandorica.” He announced aloud.</p><p>“Long ago, when the stars were young, there was a demon. A nameless, terrible, destructive force of nature. None could reason with it, none could trap it, none could stop it…”</p>
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<a name="section0018"><h2>18. The Home Box</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Wrong, wrong,” The Doctor pointed, El’s hand clasped in his as they walked through a massive chamber that looked like it belonged to a cathedral. “Bit right,” He granted, looking at a broken vase in a glass box, “Mostly wrong!”</p><p>“What is this place?” El asked, curiously looking around.</p><p>“The Delirium Archive,” The Doctor answered, gesturing around theatrically. “Final resting place of the Headless Monks. The biggest museum in history! Well, second biggest.” He quickly amended. “The Braxiatel Collection has that claim to fame.”</p><p>“How come we didn’t go to that one?” El asked.</p><p>“Got banned,” The Doctor answered, looking into the box of one of the exhibits. “Braxiatel was a sore loser when it came to poker. Wrong!” He loudly pointed at another exhibit. “Very, very wrong!”</p><p>“What is this stuff?” El asked.</p><p>“History.” The Doctor answered. “Artefacts from all over the universe. They’re displayed here so people can learn from them about the past. Oh, one of mine.” He sprinted over to the display case. “Also one of mine.”</p><p>“But… the TARDIS.” El looked confused at the Doctor. “Why come here?”</p><p>“It’s how I keep… track…” He trailed off, eyes focusing on another exhibit. He ran over to the display, peering inside. A metal box, ancient and aged with a circular indent in one side, was locked inside the case, as the Doctor walked around to examine it.</p><p>The Doctor clasped his hands, leaning on the glass, as he stared down at the box.</p><p>“What is it?” El asked, trying to see what the Doctor was looking at.</p><p>“It’s from an old starliner, Galaxy-class I’d guess, a home box.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“Home… box?”</p><p>“Yes, a sort of flight recorder. Except it homes.” The Time Lord explained. “If there’s an accident, the ship goes down, the home box flies home with all the ship’s data.”</p><p>“Okay… why’s it important?” El inquired, trying to look into the case.</p><p>“It isn’t,” The Doctor replied, lifting El up effortlessly for her to see. “See those etchings on the top?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“Old High Gallifreyan, the lost language of the Time Lords.” The Doctor lowered his voice. “There were days, there were many days, these words could burn stars, and raise up empires, and topple gods… Might even teach you a little one day, who knows?”</p><p>“What does it say?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor sighed exasperatedly, shaking his head. “Hello sweetie.” The Time Lord thinned his lips, thinking.</p><p>“So...?”  El asked. “Do we-“</p><p>“Run!” The Doctor suddenly bellowed, smashing through the glass with his hands, grabbing onto the home box, as alarms began to sound.</p><p>The two sprinted back to the TARDIS as guards came running in to investigate. The two charged into the police box, and slammed the doors behind them, breathing heavily.</p><p>El scowled and smacked the Doctor in the arm. “Stupid!” She chastised.</p><p>“Not stupid, reckless.” The Doctor replied, walking up the steps to the console, hooking up the home box to the TARDIS’s systems. “Look it up.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Why are we doing this?”</p><p>“’Cause, someone on a starship 12000 years ago is trying to get my attention.” The Doctor answered, plugging a jack into a plug on the side of the box. “Let’s see if I can get the security feed working…” He muttered, pulling the scanner down as a video began to play.</p><p>The Doctor froze, as on the video, a woman with slightly curly hair looked the camera dead in the eye, before going on her way. El looked to the Doctor sensing his recognition of the woman, as well as… regret.</p><p>The Doctor fiddled with the home box, the video skipping. It showed the woman standing at the end of a long, tubular hallway, three men in suits approaching.</p><p><em>“The party’s over, Doctor Song.”</em> The man in the video spoke, <em>“And yet, you’re still on board.”</em></p><p>The woman turned around, smiling in a sultry manner. <em>“Sorry, Alistair. I needed to see what was in your vault.” </em>She looked between the men. <em>“Do you all know what’s down there? Any of you? Because I’ll tell you something. This ship won’t reach its destination.”</em></p><p>Alistair smacked his lips. <em>“Wait till she runs. Don’t make it look like an execution.”</em></p><p>The woman smiled and checked her watch. <em>“Triple-seven five slash three four nine by ten. Zero twelve slash acorn.”</em> She adjusted her hair. <em>“Oh, and I could do with an air corridor.”</em></p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened, as he sprinted over to the keyboard.</p><p>“What was that?” El asked. “What does she mean?”</p><p>“Co-ordinates!” The Doctor replied, engaging the TARDIS. The video cut out, as the Doctor madly dashed from one panel of the hexagonal controls to the other, throwing levers and hitting buttons at seemingly random.</p><p>“Who was that?” El asked. “What was she doing?”</p><p>The Doctor said nothing, as the TARDIS began to rematerialize, the Time Lord running for the doors. He pulled them open, holding out a hand.</p><p>The woman from before came flying in, colliding with the Doctor, sending him to the floor. The Doctor exhaled in surprise, looking up at the woman.</p><p>“River.” The Doctor breathed.</p><p>The woman shot to her feet, turning to point out the doors. A massive starship shaped like a bullet with three curved prongs at the back end, a ring of engines attached, went flying away.</p><p>“Follow that ship!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“They’ve gone into warp drive!” River shouted, standing at the console beside the Doctor, the two piloting the ship trying to keep up to the starliner. “Stay close!”</p><p>“I’m trying!” The Doctor shouted back, pulling a mechanism on one of the panels.</p><p>“Use the stabilizers!” River recommended, pulling back a red lever.</p><p>“It doesn’t have stabilizers!”</p><p>“The blue switches!” River pointed.</p><p>“The blue ones don’t do anything, they’re just blue!” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Yes, they’re blue, they’re the blue stabilizers!” River shot back. She pushed the Doctor out of the way, and hit the buttons, the room stabilizing a moment later. River smiled, glancing at the Doctor. “See?”</p><p>“Yeah, well, it’s just boring now, isn’t it?” The Doctor rhetorically asked, as River went back over to the console. “They’re boring-ers! They’re blue boring-ers!” He repeated, angrily hitting the space next to the switches.</p><p>“Doctor,” El leaned over curiously, “Why can she fly the TARDIS?”</p><p>“You call that flying the TARDIS?” The Doctor repeated. “Ha!” Flying by the book… how boring of a person did you have to be? There was a reason why he threw that manual into a supernova.</p><p>“Okay,” River began, typing into the keyboard. “I’ve mapped the probability vectors, done a fold-back on the temporal isometry, charted the ship to its destination, and-“ She pulled the throttle back, the time rotor stopping in place, “Parked us right alongside.” She turned to El, smiling.</p><p>“Parked us?” The Doctor repeated. “We haven’t landed.”</p><p>“Of course we’ve landed.” River replied, looking up at the scanner smugly. “I’ve just landed her.”</p><p>“But… it didn’t make the noise.” The Doctor said, glancing around in confusion.</p><p>“What noise?” River asked, looking at the scanner.</p><p>“The noise, the…” The Doctor looked at El. “You know the noise?”</p><p>El nodded, and she began trying to imitate the TARDIS’s scraping and wheezing.</p><p>“It’s not supposed to make that noise, <em>you</em>,” She looked towards the Doctor, “Leave the brakes on.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, it’s a brilliant noise.” The Doctor replied, knowing full well the woman was just teasing, but still put out. He didn’t need El repeating incorrect information. If the sound from the TARDIS was caused by the brakes being on, and <em>not </em>the sound of time and space itself being broken down for the TARDIS to transition into the time vortex, every time lord in existence must’ve been horrible pilots. “I love that noise.” He turned to the girl by his side. “Come along, El.” He guided her towards the doors. “Let’s have a look.”</p><p>“No, wait!” River called, standing by the scanner. “Environment checks.”</p><p>“Right, yes,” The Doctor opened the doors, poking his head out. “Nice out.”</p><p>“We’re somewhere in the Gan belt, there’s an atmosphere…” River read from the scanner. “Early indications suggest-“</p><p>“We’re on Alfava Metraxis, the seventh planet in the Dundra system.” The Doctor cut her off. “Oxygen-rich atmosphere, all toxins in the soft band, 11-hour day, and-“ He stuck his head out, sniffing. “Chance of rain later.”</p><p>River huffed, shaking her head. “He thinks he’s so hot when he does that.” She remarked to El.</p><p>El tilted her head, looking at the woman. “Hot?”</p><p>“No, no!” The Doctor ran over, putting his hands over El’s ears. “Don’t corrupt her!”</p><p>El frowned, pushing the Doctor’s hands away. “How come you can fly the TARDIS?”</p><p>“I had lessons from the very best.” River answered, looking at the console.</p><p>“Well, yeah…” The Doctor smiled humbly.</p><p>“Shame you were busy that day!” River shot back.</p><p>The Doctor scowled grumpily.</p><p>“Right then,” She grabbed her heels from where she’d left them on the monitor and turned to walk down the stairs. “Why did they land here?” She asked, walking over to the doors.</p><p>The Doctor smiled knowingly. “They didn’t land.”</p><p>River turned to the Doctor, frowning. “Sorry?”</p><p>“You should’ve checked the home box!” He said, bouncing off the seat after her. “It crashed.”</p><p>River opened the doors to step out, and the Doctor slammed the doors shut, turning back around to El. He shot her a quick glance, before moving over to the console controls.</p><p>“Who is she?” El pressed once more. “How did she do that thing with the box?”</p><p>“It’s a long story, and I don’t know most of it.” The Doctor evasively answered. “Off we go.”</p><p>“Where?”</p><p>“Dunno, but we got her to where she wants to go, so let’s get where we want to go.”</p><p>El crossed her arms. “Doctor.”</p><p>The Time Lord sighed. “Her name is River Song… and she’s the future, my future. The thing about time travel, you don’t necessarily have to meet people in all the right order. It’s… complicated.”</p><p>That was an understatement. The very first time the Doctor met her, in his last body… she died, trying to make sure the Doctor wouldn’t have to be the one to sacrifice himself to save the day.</p><p>El frowned, as she turned to the doors, realizing something. “Is there another planet out there?”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “Well, of course there is.”</p><p>“…can we look?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her and began to quickly move away. “Nope, not doing it!”</p><p>“Come on, please?” El begged.</p><p>Anyone with half a heart would have trouble saying no to that face… and the Doctor had two.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El and pointed. “Five minutes.”</p><p>“Yes!” El sprinted over to the door.</p><p>“That’s all!” The Doctor outlined. “Because I’m telling you, whatever that woman wants to drag me into, I’m going to have no part of it!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Smoke and fire billowed from the twisted, warped metal skeleton. The starship had crashed, debris scattering across the landscape, the main section of the ship just barely being held up by an ancient temple carved out of stone.</p><p>“What caused it to crash?” River asked, looking up at the primary hull, jutting out of the stone like a knife. “Not me.”</p><p>“Nah.” The Doctor replied, shaking his head. “The airlock would’ve sealed itself seconds after you blew it. According to the home box there was a phase shift in the warp engines. No survivors.” He looked up to the wreckage.</p><p>Across the side of the bullet-shaped primary hull, the ship’s name was written in large, reflective letters.</p><p>
  <em>Byzantium.</em>
</p><p>The Doctor swallowed. Evidently, this was the ‘Crash of the Byzantium’ she’d mentioned to him when they’d first met.</p><p>“A phase shift would have to be sabotage.” River continued, unaware of the Time Lord’s inner turmoil. “I did warn them.” She shook her head, looking down at a handheld communicator with an inbuilt screen.</p><p>The Doctor glanced over at her. “About what?”</p><p>“At least the building was empty.” River commented, looking at the ancient stone monument. “Aplan temple. Unoccupied for centuries.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, turning away.</p><p>“Hi,” El walked over to River, “I’m El.”</p><p>“Oh, I know.” River smiled down at the girl. “Doctor River Song.”</p><p>“How did you do that thing with the box?” The buzzcut girl asked.</p><p>River laughed. “Two things guaranteed to show up in museums; The home box of a category four starliner, and sooner or later,” She turned around, looking at the Doctor. “Him.” She smiled, looking to El. “It’s how he keeps score.”</p><p>El laughed. “I know!”</p><p>River began laughing lightly as well. “It’s hilarious, isn’t it?”</p><p>The Doctor fake laughed as he approached back. “I’m nobody’s taxi service, I’m not going to be there to catch you every time you dive out the airlock!”</p><p>River snorted. “And you are so wrong.” She tapped her communicator, as the Doctor turned to walk away. “There’s one survivor. There’s a thing in the belly of that ship that can’t ever die.” River smiled smugly, as the Doctor whipped back around. “That got his attention.” She said to El. Her communicator bleeped, and she held it to her ear. “You lot in orbit yet?” She asked of the party on the other end, walking further along the beach. “Yes, I saw it land, I’m at the crash site. Try to home in on my signal. Doctor!” She held up the device. “Can you sonic me? I need to boost the signal so we can use it as a beacon.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, but acquiesced, the sonic screwdriver buzzing as it worked.</p><p>River gave a half-sarcastic thankful curtsy, before continuing along.</p><p>---------</p><p>“We have a minute,” River stated, producing an old, blue book from her bag. “Shall we?” She begun flicking through the pages. “Where are we up to? Have we done the Bone Meadows?”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head.</p><p>“What about the Mind Flayer?”</p><p>El frowned, looking at the aged pages. “What’s that?”</p><p>“Stay away from it.” The Doctor calmly ordered, El stopping.</p><p>“But what is it?” El repeated.</p><p>“I told you before, we keep meeting out of order. That’s things from her perspective, the days I haven’t lived yet.” The Doctor explained. “Her diary. Her past, my future. Can’t know too much about your own future.”</p><p>El nodded and looked over as four swirling vortexes of sand kicked up on the other end of the beach. A moment later, four people materialized out of the dust, the vortexes dying down. They looked like soldiers, wearing desert camouflage and wielding guns.</p><p>El, for a brief moment, thought they were in trouble, but River looked to El, gently smiling, and the girl’s unease quickly died down.</p><p>An older man, the patch on his uniform proclaiming his name to be Octavian, approached the three.</p><p>“You promised me an army, Doctor Song.” Octavian pointedly said as he approached.</p><p>“No,” River retorted, “I promised you the <em>equivalent </em>of an army. This is the Doctor.”</p><p>The older man’s jaw dropped, as he slowly turned to look at the Time Lord.</p><p>The Doctor shot the man a salute.</p><p>“Father Octavian, sir,” The man introduced himself, shaking the Doctor’s hand, “Bishop, second-class. Twenty Clerics at my command. The troops are already in the dropship and landing shortly.” He released the Time Lord’s hand, looking up to the wreckage of the Byzantium. “Doctor Song was helping us with a covert investigation.” He slowly turned to look back at the Doctor. “Has Doctor Song explained what we’re dealing with?”</p><p>“Doctor,” River Song turned to the Time Lord, “What do you know of the Weeping Angels?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. The Image of an Angel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“The Angel, as far as we know, is still trapped within the ship.” Octavian explained, the Doctor and El following him through the camp the Clerics had set up. Night had fallen but given that the planet only had an 11-hour day, they weren’t really that tired. “Our mission is to get inside and neutralize it. We can’t go in through the top, we’d be too close to the drives. According to this,” He pulled out a scanning device of his own, “Behind the cliff face, there’s a network of catacombs leading right up to the temple. We can blow through the face of the cliffs, get in through the entrance chamber, and climb our way up.”</p><p>“Oh, good.” The Doctor had a big smile on his face, as he looked at the cliff wall.</p><p>“Good, sir?” Octavian asked.</p><p>“Catacombs, probably dark ones.” The Doctor looked to Octavian. “Dark catacombs, great.”</p><p>“Technically,” Octavian stammered, looking back, “I believe it’s called a Maze of the Dead.”</p><p>“You can stop anytime you like.” The Doctor said.</p><p>“…maze of the dead?” El fearfully repeated.</p><p>“The place is a tomb, and it’s a maze.” The Doctor answered. “Maze of the dead.”</p><p>“Father Octavian!” A cleric called.</p><p>“Excuse me, sir.” Octavian asked of the Doctor, as he went to go assist his troops.</p><p>“Why do they call him father?” El asked. “Are they his sons?”</p><p>“Nah,” The Doctor answered, “It’s a religious thing.”</p><p>“Religious?”</p><p>“I’ll explain later,” The Doctor replied, “But the long story short of it is, Earth’s churches modernized during the Interstellar Crusades.”</p><p>El blinked.</p><p>“They wanted to push their belief system on others, so they got a lot of big guns.” The Doctor simplified, before doing a double take. “I thought I told you to stay in the TARDIS.”</p><p>“You did.” El answered, not understanding the rhetorical question.</p><p>“So, why aren’t you there?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p>“Not going.” She replied, crossing her arms. “No bad men, so I’m not hiding.”</p><p>“El,” He turned to her gravely, “A Weeping Angel is the deadliest, most powerful, most malevolent creature evolution has ever produced, and right now one of them is trapped inside that wreckage, and I’m supposed to climb in after it with a screwdriver and a torch, and assuming I survive the radiation long enough, and assuming the whole ship doesn’t explode in my face, do something incredibly clever which I haven’t thought of yet. That’s my day. Any questions?”</p><p>El sighed. “No. Not leaving you.”</p><p>“Alright then.” The Doctor rubbed his forehead. “Let’s just get this mess sorted out so we can-“</p><p>“Doctor!” River called from one of the prefabs, now wearing the same garb as the Clerics. “Doctor!”</p><p>The Time Lord let out a frustrated sigh. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The three, joined by Father Octavian, watched a video, practically coated in static it was so distorted. It was a video feed of the vault from the time before the crash, and on the image, was a statue of an angel, her back turned to the camera, covering her face.</p><p>“What do you think?” River asked of the Doctor. “It’s the security feed from the cameras in the Byzantium vault. I ripped it when I was on board. Sorry about the quality.” She apologized, as the Doctor approached the screen. “It’s four seconds, I’ve put it on a loop.”</p><p>“Yep, it’s an angel.” The Doctor recognized. “Hands covering its face.”</p><p>El frowned. “Why does it do that?”</p><p>“It’s a quantum-locked lifeform.” The Doctor explained, still looking at the screen. “Doesn’t exist when it’s under observation. Literally, it freezes into stone when it’s being looked at. Even its own gaze could cause it to freeze up. That’s why it’s covering its eyes, it isn’t weeping, it’s making sure it can’t see its own reflection.”</p><p>“You’ve encountered the angels before then?” Octavian inquired.</p><p>“Once,” The Doctor turned to him to reply, before looking back at the screen. “On Earth, a long time ago. But they were scavengers, barely surviving. Where did it come from?” He asked of River.</p><p>“Pulled from the ruins of Razbahan, end of last century.” She replied. “It’s been in private hands ever since, dormant all the time.”</p><p>The Doctor stared River dead in the eyes. “There’s a difference between being dormant… and being patient.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“The hyperdrive would’ve split open on impact,” The Doctor theorized, crossing the camp, River and Octavian following behind, El staying behind in the Clerics’ transport pod since the TARDIS was too far a walk, and if the angel had somehow gotten out, the dark beach would be free real estate for the Angel. “That whole ship’s gonna be flooded with drive burn radiation, cracked electrons, gravity storms, deadly to almost every living thing.”</p><p>“Deadly to an angel?” Octavian asked, walking behind the Doctor.</p><p>“Dinner to an angel.” The Doctor retorted, clapping his hands. “The longer we leave it there, the stronger it’ll grow. Who built that temple? Are they still around?” He asked, continuing to walk.</p><p>“The Aplans.” River answered. “Indigenous life form. Died out 400 years ago.”</p><p>“Two hundred years later, the planet was terraformed,” Octavian continued. “Currently there are six billion human colonists.”</p><p>“Ooh! You lot, you’re everywhere!” The Doctor remarked. “You’re like rabbits! I’ll never get done saving you.”</p><p>“Sir, if there is a clear and present danger to the population-“</p><p>“Oh, there is, as bad as it gets. Bishop!” The Doctor clapped his hands. “Lock and load.”</p><p>“Verger,” Octavian called, “How are we doing with those explosives? Doctor Song, with me.”</p><p>“Two minutes!” River stated. “Sweetie, I need you!”</p><p>“What about me?” El called from the pod. For the first time in a long time, she wasn’t the center of attention. Not a bad thing, but she was used to being the focus of everybody’s attention, for better or worse.</p><p>The girl sighed and stepped back into the pod.</p><p>El’s attention turned to the screen, and her head tilted.</p><p>The Angel’s face was uncovered.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I found this,” River handed the Doctor a worn book. “Definitive work on the angels. Well, the only one. Written by a madman, it’s almost unreadable, but I’ve marked a few passages.” She explained, the Doctor flicking through all the pages at lighting speed.</p><p>“Hmm, not bad.” The Doctor clamped the book shut. “Bit slow in the middle. Didn’t you hate his girlfriend? No, hang on, wait…” He began sniffing the book.</p><p>“Doctor Song?” El peeked her head out. “Angel video, more than one?”</p><p>River shook her head, understanding the girl’s broken way of speaking perfectly. “Just the four seconds.”</p><p>“Oh… Okay.” El went back inside.</p><p>“This book is wrong, something very very wrong…” The Doctor muttered. “But what?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El looked back to the screen, and stopped, as the Angel was turned to face the camera, arms held out at its side.</p><p>El leaned close to it, curiously. Her eyes flickered down to the corner, viewing the same four seconds on repeat. She looked back to the angel, and gasped, recoiling, as it got closer to the screen.</p><p>El stared, curious…</p><p>Unaware as the door sealed itself shut behind her.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“It’s so strange when you go all baby-face.” River commented, watching the Doctor look through the book again. “How early is this for you?”</p><p>“Very early.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>River smiled. “So, you don’t know who I am yet?”</p><p>“I’ve a few working theories.” The Doctor replied, examining the book laterally.</p><p>“Oh?” River theatrically asked. “Well, let’s hear some.”</p><p>“Okay, theory one, you’re a future version of me… and that’s it.”</p><p>River laughed. “That’s it? Oh, don’t be daft.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Yeah, I said it was a theory. I didn’t say it was a good one. Who do you know who I am?” The Time Lord asked while thinking about it. “I don’t always have the same face.”</p><p>“I have pictures of all your faces.” River answered, looking into her diary. “You never show up in the right order, though. I need the spotter’s guide.”</p><p>“Pictures.” The Doctor repeated, suddenly realizing the thing wrong about the ancient tome. “Why aren’t there any pictures?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El frowned, keeping her eyes trained on the screen, as she went for the remote for the screen. She didn’t know the particulars of the device, but she’d seen River use it to control the video.</p><p>It was just as simple as pressing a button.</p><p>El hit the button, and the screen went black, turning back on a nanosecond later.</p><p>She frowned, reaching out mentally for the power cord under the screen. She gave it a good, psychic pull…</p><p>But it didn’t budge, and when the video loop repeated, the angel was standing even closer, the entire screen almost taken up by its face.</p><p>The girl gasped, feeling a presence radiating from the screen. Something ancient, something malevolent…</p><p>Something hungry.</p><p>“Doctor…?” El called, going for the door. She attempted to turn the wheel, grunting as it stayed locked in place.</p><p>She threw her hand out, focusing her mind on the door with all her strength.</p><p>The metal dented slightly, but bent right back into shape a moment later.</p><p>El looked back to the screen, recoiling in fear as the angel’s face was now locked in a twisted snarl, fangs barred.</p><p>“Doctor!” El screamed.</p><p>---------</p><p>“This whole book, it’s a warning about the Weeping Angels.” The Doctor stated. “So, why not show us what to look out for?”</p><p>“There was that bit about images,” River remembered, “What was that?”</p><p>“Yes!” The Doctor recalled himself. “Hang on…” He flicked back through the book. “The image of an angel becomes itself an angel…”</p><p>“What does that mean?” River asked. “The image of an angel becomes itself an angel?”</p><p>----------</p><p>El gasped, banging against the door, as a Weeping Angel, shrouded in static, began to materialize in the room out of the screen.</p><p>“Doctor!” El wailed, terrified, powerless against the creature. “It’s in here!”</p><p>---------</p><p>“El!” The Doctor dropped the book, sprinting over to the drop pod. “El, El!” The Time Lord banged on his side of the door. “Are you alright!? What’s happening!?”</p><p>“It’s…” El replied, “Coming out of the picture.” She relayed.</p><p>“Don’t take your eyes off it!” He ordered, grabbing the sonic screwdriver, trying to use it on the door controls. “Don’t even blink! It can’t move if you’re looking at it!”</p><p>“What’s wrong?” River asked, rushing over.</p><p>“Deadlocked!” The Doctor replied, pulling open a panel on one side of the pod.</p><p>“There is no deadlock.” River stated, trying to work the controls herself.</p><p>-------</p><p>El struggled to stare at the Weeping Angel, trying to fight the urge to blink. She tried to alternate her eyes, but… something about the Angel was making it impossible to blink either eye unless it was both at once.</p><p>“Doctor!” El shouted, as the Angel’s image began to become solid.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“What are you doing?” River asked.</p><p>“Cutting the power.” The Doctor answered, frantically working. “It’s using the screen, I’m turning the screen off!” He grunted in frustration. “No good, it’s deadlocked the whole system.”</p><p>“There is no deadlock!” River insisted.</p><p>“Well, there is now!”</p><p>“Help me!” El called, causing the Doctor to run over to the door.</p><p>“Can you turn it off?” The Time Lord asked. “The screen, El, can you turn it off?”</p><p>“Tried!” El replied.</p><p>“Try again, but don’t take your eyes off that Angel!” He replied, running back to the side panel. “Each time it moves, it’ll move faster, don’t blink!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I’m not!” El replied, shakily moving to where she left the remote. Picking it up, she took more shaky steps back towards the door, and hit the button.  “It keeps coming back!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Yeah, that’s the angel.” The Doctor replied, breathless.</p><p>------------</p><p> “What are you doing?” The Doctor demanded, as River held a blowtorch to the door.</p><p>“Trying to cut through, it’s not even warm.” River answered, the metal of the door cold to the touch.</p><p>“There’s no way in, it’s not physically possible!” The Time Lord grunted in frustration.</p><p>“Doctor…” El swallowed. “What’s going to happen?”</p><p>“Just keep looking at it, don’t stop looking!” The Doctor commanded, running for the discarded book.</p><p>“Please… answer.”</p><p>“Don’t worry, sweetie!” River called through the door. “Your dad and I will get you out of there!”</p><p>The Doctor came running back over, leaning against the door. “El, keep looking at it, but not at the eyes! Anywhere but the eyes!”</p><p>“Why?” El asked fearfully.</p><p>“What is it?” River inquired.</p><p>“Eyes are not the windows to the soul; they are the doors.” The Doctor read. “Beware what may enter there.”</p><p>---------</p><p>El frowned, as the static repeated. For that split second, it was like the Angel wasn’t there at all.</p><p>Images…</p><p>The image of an angel couldn’t be an angel, if there was no image at all.</p><p>El, shakily, raised the hand with the remote. She waited for the four second loop to end, and felt the angel’s presence disappear, hitting the button.</p><p>The angel standing there was completely consumed by paused static, the screen behind it doing much of the same as the door released. The angel disappeared, and the Doctor came running in.</p><p>“El!” He pulled her into a relieved hug. “You’re safe, you’re safe… How did you do that?”</p><p>“There was… a pause.” El answered. “Turned it off then.”</p><p>“Oh, you brilliant little human!” The Doctor proudly beamed, releasing her before running over to the screen. He pulled the power cord out, scanning it with the sonic.</p><p>“So, it was here?” River asked, checking the girl over herself.</p><p>El frowned. River was just as worried about her as the Doctor, how come?</p><p>“The angel?” River inquired.</p><p>“That was a projection of the angel.” The Doctor answered, shoving the screwdriver back in his pocket. “It’s reaching out, getting a good look at us. It’s no longer dormant.”</p><p>A rumbling shockwave shook the pod, the Clerics setting off their explosives outside.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at the other two and poked his head out.</p><p>“Doctor!” Octavian called as the Time Lord looked on. “We’re through.”</p><p>“Okay…” He turned back to the others. “Now it starts.”</p><p>River moved to follow, but stopped, looking at El. “You coming?”</p><p>“Yes…” El rubbed at her eye. “Something in my eye.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor climbed down the rope ladder first, helping El down, before River descended, all of them entering the Maze of the Dead.</p><p>The Doctor raised his torch, clicking it on, doing a quick look-about of the area. “Have we got any gravity globes?”</p><p>“Grav globe.” Octavian ordered, one of the Clerics pulling the device out of his pack.</p><p>The Cleric approached the Doctor, handing the Time Lord the spherical device.</p><p>“What is this place?” El asked, looking around.</p><p>“Aplan mortarium.” River replied. “Sometimes called a Maze of the Dead.”</p><p>“What’s that?”</p><p>“Well, if you happen to be a creature of living stone…” The Doctor spoke up. He hit a switch on the globe, kicking it high into the air, the object lighting up as it hovered high above, bathing the room in blue light.</p><p>The place was a massive catacomb, walkways carved out of the stone, statues dotted about, standing as a monument to the dead.</p><p>“The perfect hiding place.” The Doctor finished, looking around.</p><p>“I guess this makes it a bit trickier.” Octavian commented, sweeping the chamber. “A stone angel on the loose among stone statues. A lot harder than I prayed for.”</p><p>“A needle in a haystack.” River breathed, looking around.</p><p>“A needle that looks like hay.” The Doctor concurred. “A hay-like needle. Of death. A hay-like needle of death in a haystack of statues.” He drew a breath. “No, yours was fine.”</p><p>“Right. Check every single statue in this chamber.” Octavian ordered his men, the Clerics moving to do just that. “You know what you’re looking for, complete visual inspection. One question; how do we fight it?”</p><p>“We find it!” The Doctor replied, “And hope…” He stated seriously, walking into the catacombs, El following.</p><p>River moved to keep up but was stopped by Octavian.</p><p>“He doesn’t know yet, does he?” Octavian asked. “Who and what you are?”</p><p>River swallowed. “It’s too early in his time stream.”</p><p>“Well make sure he doesn’t work it out,” Octavian recommended. “Or he’s not going to help us.” Octavian glanced to El. “Least of all her.”</p><p>River huffed. “I won’t let you down. Believe you me, I have no intention on going back to prison.”</p><p>Octavian fixed her with a pointed stare, as River shook off his grip, moving to join the Doctor and El.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Time of Angels</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor looked all around, like a child on a sugar high, sweeping the mortarium. He and El exited out of a small tunnel, into a larger open space.</p><p>El gasped, looking up at what looked like an ancient city, frozen in stone, statues of people placed like they were going about their lives.</p><p>The girl frowned, rubbing at her eye again, frowning as she looked at the tiny grey speck stuck to her finger. She began to rub her eye with the palm of her hand, freezing at what felt like sand being knocked loose by the motion.</p><p>El looked at the hand responsible and frowned. Absolutely nothing was there, but still, she wiped it off.</p><p>“You all right?” River asked, El jumping as she suddenly appeared.</p><p>“Yes.” El quickly answered. Truthfully speaking, she wasn’t alright. Shortly after dealing with the angel, she could still feel its mind, ancient, and so, so cruel. But El couldn’t make sense of where it was. It seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. “What is this place?” She asked, looking around at the humanoid statues. One-head, two arms, two legs, oddly comforting in that normality, despite being totally featureless.</p><p>“Maze of the dead, a labyrinth with people buried in the walls.” River explained.</p><p>“Labyrinth?” El repeated.</p><p>“Maze.” River explained, “Give me your arm.” She moved to grab El’s right arm, but the girl yanked away, as River produced a syringe out of her bag.</p><p>El had seen this dozens of times, back in the bad place.</p><p>“Sweetie?” River frowned, looking at the girl. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“No.” El resisted, shaking. “No!” She screamed.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor came running around the corner. He stopped, upon seeing River holding the syringe, and his face went red. “What in God’s name are you doing!?” The Doctor bellowed, storming over, yanking it out of River’s hand. “She’s from a lab where she’s been experimented on her entire life, didn’t it occur to you that she might have bad experiences with needles!?”</p><p>River looked to the syringe and froze. “Oh my God. I didn’t-“</p><p>“As usual, <em>I </em>have to do all the thinking around here!” The Doctor scowled. He turned to the shivering 12-year old, looking like she was having flashbacks. A little detail even slipped out.</p><p>
  <em>El, screaming, strapped to a hospital bed as the scientists shot her full of experimental drugs trying to boost her powers.</em>
</p><p>“Hey,” The Doctor crouched down in front of her. “’S, okay, no one’s going to hurt you. Her brain just took the day off!” The Doctor raised his voice at River. “What even is this?”</p><p>“It’s a viro-stabilizer.” River answered, a bit put off by seeing the Doctor get so angry with her. “Boosts the immune system against-“</p><p>“Radiation, drive burn, yes, yes, I know.” The Doctor cut her off, turning back to El. “Hey, listen.” He placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. “I know you’ve had bad experiences with stuff like this, but I need you to try and calm down. Do you think you can do that?”</p><p>El sniffling, nodded.</p><p>“Then I need you to let me give you this.” He said, holding up the syringe. “It’s going to be very, very dangerous in that ship, and if I don’t give you this, you <em>will </em>die up there.”</p><p>El swallowed. “T-TARDIS?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled sadly. “We’re too far away, now. We need every Cleric we can get, and backtracking to the TARDIS would take too long and we wouldn’t be able to stop the angel. Why do you think you’re still here instead of there? Hey, you trust me, right?”</p><p>El nodded again.</p><p>“Then you know I wouldn’t let anything bad happen to you.” The Doctor softly told her. “It’s going to hurt a little bit, but it’ll be just a pinch, just like this,” He demonstrated on her arm, “And it’ll be over. I’ll even let you hold my hand. And hey, afterwards, I’ll take you to get some ice cream, how does that sound?”</p><p>“Ice cream?” El asked.</p><p>“Oh, it’s lovely stuff, isn’t it, River?” The Doctor prompted, turning to her.</p><p>River nodded quickly in agreement. “Very good, like eating flavored snow.”</p><p>“Snow?”</p><p>“Oh, there’s a thought!” The Doctor suddenly considered. “I’ll take you to Confectius! It snows there, but the snow is ice cream! You can even eat as much of it as you want without getting a stomachache!”</p><p>El closed her eyes, steadying her breathing, and nodded. “Okay… Do it.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, “Well, there’s the thing…” He removed his hand from her arm, the pinching sensation vanishing. He held up the empty syringe.</p><p>El looked at it, gaping. “You…”</p><p>“Rule of parenting 502:” The Doctor threw the syringe away. “Distract your kids with something else, then give them their vaccinations when they’re not looking. Classic.”</p><p>“…can we still get ice cream?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor snorted. “Of course. I have entire storerooms of the stuff.”</p><p>A machine gun suddenly popped off, and the Doctor’s head quirked up, as he took off towards the source, El and River following.</p><p>The three turned the corner, to see a Cleric, younger than the others, holding the smoking gun in front of one of the statues.</p><p>“Sorry,” The Cleric apologized, “I thought I saw it looking at me…”</p><p>“We know what the angel looks like. Is that the angel?” Octavian asked, chastising.</p><p>“…no, sir.”</p><p>“No, sir, it is not!” Octavian corrected. “According to the Doctor, we are facing an enemy of unknowable power, and infinite evil. So, it would be good, it would be very good, if we could all remain calm in the presence of décor.</p><p>“What’s your name?” The Doctor asked, looking over to the young man.</p><p>“Bob, sir.” The Cleric answered.</p><p>“Oh, that’s a great name!” The Doctor grinned. “I love Bob!”</p><p>“It’s a sacred name.” Octavian stated. “We all have Sacred Names. They’re given to us in service of the Church.”</p><p>“Sacred Bob.” The Doctor walked up. “More like Scared Bob, eh?”</p><p>Bob glanced between Octavian and the Doctor. “Yes, sir.”</p><p>“Ah, good!” The Time Lord gave the Cleric a pat on the back. “Scared keeps you fast. Anyone in this room who isn’t scared is a moron.” The Doctor looked to Octavian with that. “Carry on.” He said, stepping back.</p><p>“We’ll be moving into the maze in two minutes!” Octavian announced.</p><p>----------</p><p>“Incredible builders, the Aplans.” River remarked, as they headed deeper into the maze. “This place took a direct hit from the crash, and it’s still standing.”</p><p>“Had dinner with their chief architect once.” The Doctor replied. “Two heads are better than one.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Two heads?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Literally. That book, the very end, what did it say?” He asked of River.</p><p>“Hang on.” River replied, searching for it.</p><p>“Read it to me.” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>“What if we had dreams that could think for themselves?” River recited. “What if one day, our dreams no longer needed us? When these things occur, and are held to be true, the time will be upon us. The Time of Angels.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Are we there yet?” El asked, huffing. They’d been climbing for quite some time, with no end in sight. The Aplans sure loved their stairs.</p><p>“The maze is on six levels, representing the ascent of the soul,” River explained. “Only two levels to go.”</p><p>“Lovely species, the Aplans.” The Doctor commented, allowing the Clerics to take the lead. “We should visit them sometime.”</p><p>“But… they’re all dead.” El recalled.</p><p>“So is Virginia Woolf.” The Doctor retorted. “I’m on her bowling team. Time machine, remember? The Aplans really are a lovely lot. Very relaxed, sort of cheerful.” The Doctor remarked, “That’s having two heads, for you. You’re never short of a snog.”</p><p>“Doctor,” River spoke up, “There’s something. I don’t know what it is-“</p><p>“Yeah,” The Doctor agreed. “There’s something wrong, something obvious, something staring us in the face… Don’t know what it is, but I’m working on it. ‘Course, that’s why the Aplans had to start making laws against it. Ridiculous, laws against self-marrying. Why, my last face and my eighth one made a lovely couple! Course, we weren’t <em>really </em>a couple, but we did have to sneak into a couples’ ball, and we were the only options. But then, that’s the Church for you--no offense, Octavian.”</p><p>“Quite a lot taken,” Octavian replied, “If that’s alright, Doctor.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Lowest point of the wreckage is about fifty feet up from here.” Octavian stated, pointing his torch at the ceiling. “That way.”</p><p>“The Church did have a point, though, thinking about it.” The Doctor continued. “The divorces were awful… messy… Oh.” The Doctor stopped, looking around.</p><p>El stopped as well, looking to the Doctor. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>River sharply inhaled, operating on the same wavelength as the Doctor. “Oh.”</p><p>The Doctor and River looked around, fear budding as they realized the obvious thing staring them in the face the entire time.</p><p>“How could we not notice that?” River hissed.</p><p>“Low-level perception filter, maybe?” The Doctor suggested. “Or maybe we’re just thick!”</p><p>“What’s wrong, sir?” Octavian questioned.</p><p>“Nobody move!” The Doctor commanded. “Nobody move, everybody stay exactly where they are! Bishop, I am truly sorry. I’ve made a mistake, and we’re all in terrible danger.”</p><p>“What danger?” Octavian questioned.</p><p>River drew a breath. “The Aplans… they all had two heads.”</p><p>“Yes, I get that, so?”</p><p>“So… why don’t the statues?” The Doctor pointed out, room going cold for everybody inside. “Everbody move… over there.” He pointed with the torch. “Don’t ask questions, don’t speak, just move.” He instructed, everybody, including himself, gathering in the small space. “Okay… I want you all to switch off your torches.”</p><p>“Sir?”</p><p>“Just do it.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>One by one, the beams of each torch cut out, leaving only the Doctor’s activated. The Time Lord drew a breath, and quickly turned the switch on and off again.</p><p>The group jumped collectively, as every statue in the chamber was now turned to face them.</p><p>“They’re angels!” The Doctor stated. “All of them!”</p><p>“But they can’t be!” River replied.</p><p>“Clerics, keep watching them.” The Doctor ordered. “Every statue in this maze, every single one is a Weeping Angel…”</p><p>“But there was only one angel on the ship,” River insisted, “I swear.”</p><p>“Were they… already here?” El suggested.</p><p>“Not a bad guess.” The Doctor replied. “The crash wasn’t random sabotage; it was a rescue mission! They must’ve been down here for ages, starving…” The Doctor looked at the statue, featureless. “That’s why they haven’t killed us yet, or why they don’t even look like angels… their image is their power. Being trapped down here for so long, they’ve been starving, losing their power. But now… The ruptured warp drive of a starliner; the perfect feast for an army of angels.”</p><p>River inhaled in horror. “We need to get out of here, fast.”</p><p>“Bob, Angelo, Christian, come in.” Octavian spoke into his radio. “Any of you, come in!”</p><p><em>“It’s Bob, sir. Sorry, sir.” </em>The young cleric replied.</p><p>“Bob, are Angelo and Christian with you?” Octavian inquired. “All the statues are active. I repeat, all the statues are active!”</p><p>
  <em>“I know, sir. Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The statues killed them, sir.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor yanked the radio out of Octavian’s hand. “Bob, Sacred Bob, it’s me, the Doctor. Where are you now?”</p><p>“I’m talking to my-“ Octavian tried to speak.</p><p>The Doctor cut the man off with a held-up finger.</p><p>
  <em>“I’m on my way up to you, sir. I’m homing in on your signal.”</em>
</p><p>“Ah, well done Bob! Scared keeps you fast, didn’t I tell you? Your friends, what did the angels do to them?”</p><p>
  <em>“Snapped their necks, sir?”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor frowned. “That’s odd. See, that’s not how the angels kill you, they displace you in time, feed off the days you would’ve lived. Unless, they needed the bodies for something.” He handed the communicator back.</p><p>“Bob, did you check their data packs for vital signs?” Octavian pressed. “We may be able to initiate a rescue plan.”</p><p>“Oh, don’t be an idiot!” The Doctor yanked it back. “The angels don’t leave survivors! Bob, keep running,” He spoke into the communicator, “but tell me, how did you escape?”</p><p>
  <em>“I didn’t, sir. The angel killed me too.”</em>
</p><p>Everybody in the room felt a shiver run up their spines, and El thought she could feel a twisted sense of… was that laughing? Coming from somewhere.</p><p>“What do you mean, the angel killed you too?” The Doctor slowly spoke into the radio.</p><p>
  <em>“Snapped my neck, sir. Wasn’t as painless as I expected, but it was pretty quick, so that was something.”</em>
</p><p>“If you’re dead, how am I talking to you?” The Doctor questioned. These Clerics weren’t wearing neural relays, that left data ghosts out of the question.</p><p><em>“You’re not talking to me, sir.” </em>Bob replied. <em>“The angel has no voice. It stripped my cerebral cortex from my body and reanimated a version of my consciousness to communicate with you. Sorry for the confusion, sir.”</em></p><p>El covered her mouth in horror. If the angel was using what was left of Bob to talk to them… did that mean he was aware of what was happening? Unable to move, see, being forced to speak by something older than most of human civilization?</p><p>“So, when you say you’re on you’re way up to us…” The Doctor began.</p><p>
  <em>“It’s the angel that’s coming sir, yes.”</em>
</p><p>“No way out.” The Doctor cut the radio off.</p><p>“Then we climb out through the wreckage!” Octavian stated, turning to his men. “Go, go, go!”</p><p>“All of you, go!” The Doctor ordered, pushing the others ahead.</p><p>“Doctor?” El looked to him.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’m coming. Go.” He pointed, the girl sticking close to River.</p><p>“Yeah, called you an idiot.” The Doctor said to Octavian. “Sorry, but there’s no way we could’ve rescued your men.”</p><p>“I know that, sir.” Octavian replied. “And when you’ve flown away in your little blue box, I’ll explain that to their families.” The Bishop shook his head and walked to join the others.</p><p>“Angel Bob.” The Doctor addressed, speaking into the communicator. “Which angel am I talking to? The one from the ship?”</p><p><em>“Yes, sir.” </em>The entity confirmed. <em>“And the other angels are still restoring.”</em></p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor smiled. “So, the angel is not in the wreckage. Thank you!” He offered, running to join the rest of the group. As he ran, he noticed he was coming up on El, the girl leaning on a boulder. “Don’t wait for me, go! Run!”</p><p>“I… can’t.” El replied, standing still. The Doctor stopped, turning around, running back over.</p><p>“Why not?” He questioned.</p><p>“My hand…” El stared at it in horror. “It’s rock.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, before his eyes widened. “You looked into the angel’s eyes, didn’t you?” He asked, shining the light in each of her eyes.</p><p>“I didn’t mean to…” El replied, standing frozen.</p><p>“Listen to me, El, it’s just messing with your head.” The Doctor told her. “Your hand isn’t made of stone.”</p><p>“It is.” El insisted. “Can’t move it.”</p><p>“El, it’s in your mind.” The Doctor told her. “That angel made a mistake, it chose to enter the head of a psychic, you’ve got ways to guard against it like no other human, but you have to <em>try.”</em></p><p>“I…” El stammered. “I can’t.”</p><p>“You can!” The Doctor replied. “I believe in you. The angel is in <em>your </em>mind, not the other way around. You’re in control of the place, not it. So, focus, and move your hand.”</p><p>El frowned, staring at it, shaking. One of her fingers moved a centimeter, and the girl could feel the angel’s momentary shock, before it turned to fury.</p><p>El, now feeling furious herself that something was trying to take her mind from the inside out, focused that fury to moving her hand… and ripped it away.</p><p>“Aha!” The Doctor whooped, taking the girl’s hand, pulling her along. “El, you are a magnificent human being! When we get back to the TARDIS, you’re gonna get all the ice cream you want!”</p><p>The two turned the corner, walking down the tunnel to join the others.</p><p>“Yep, it’s the angels.” The Doctor said aloud, watching them view their torches and the gravity globe in confusion. “They’re coming. And they’re draining the power for themselves.”</p><p>“Which means we won’t be able to see them.” Octavian shook his head.</p><p>“Which means we can’t stay here.” The Doctor confirmed, looking around. He looked up to the ceiling, the metal hull of the Byzantium having broken through during the crash.</p><p>“Sir, two more, incoming!” A cleric shouted.</p><p>“Any suggestions?” River asked of the Doctor.</p><p>“The statues are advancing on all sides and we don’t have the equipment necessary to make the climb to the Byzantium.” Octavian gravely reported.</p><p>The Doctor closed his eyes thinking.</p><p>“There’s no way up, no way back, no way out.” River stated glancing at the Doctor. “No pressure, but this is usually when you have a really good idea.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes snapped open, and he looked to the others. “There’s always a way out.” The torches all flickered again. “There’s always a way out!” He repeated.</p><p><em>“Doctor,”</em> The Angel radioed. <em>“Can I speak to the Doctor please?”</em></p><p>“Hello angels.” The Doctor replied. “What’s your problem?”</p><p>
  <em>“Your power will not last much longer, and the angels will be with you shortly. Sorry sir.”</em>
</p><p>“Why are you telling me this?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>
  <em>“There’s something the angels are very keen you should know before the end.”</em>
</p><p>“Which is?”</p><p><em>“I died in fear.” </em>The monster using what remained of Bob as a mouthpiece stated.</p><p>“I’m sorry?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>
  <em>“You told me my fear would keep me alive, but I died afraid in pain and alone. You made me trust you, and when it mattered… you let me down.”</em>
</p><p>“What is it doing?” El asked.</p><p>“Something very, very stupid.” River swallowed. “It’s making the Doctor angry.”</p><p>The Time Lord’s jaw clamped in an angry frown.</p><p>
  <em>“I’m sorry, sir. The angels were very keen for you to know that.”</em>
</p><p>“Well then,” The Doctor replied, growling. The angel had succeeded, but it hadn’t the first idea of the ramifications. “The angels have just made their second mistake, because I’m not going to let that pass. I’m sorry you’re dead, Bob, but I swear to whatever’s left of you <em>they will be sorrier.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“But you’re trapped, sir, and about to die.”</em>
</p><p>“Yeah, I’m trapped.” The Doctor granted. “And you know what, speaking of traps, this one has got a great big mistake in it!” The Time Lord twirled, looking around at the inside of the chamber. “A great big whopping mistake!”</p><p>
  <em>“What mistake, sir?”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor looked to El. “Trust me?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>The Time Lord held out his hand. “Then stay by my side and cover your ears.” The Doctor then looked to River. “Trust me?”</p><p>“Always.” The woman smiled.</p><p>“You lot,” The Doctor turned to the Clerics. “Trust me?”</p><p>“Sir, two more incoming!”</p><p>Octavian nodded. “We have faith, sir.”</p><p>The Doctor clapped his hands, pointing to the pistol at the man’s side. “Then give me your gun.”</p><p>Octavian reached into the holster, handing the sidearm to the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor inspected it. <em>‘9mm. Should be more than powerful enough.’ </em>“I’m about to do something incredibly stupid and dangerous, when I do,” The Time Lord hopped up and down, “jump.”</p><p>“Where?” Octavian asked.</p><p>“Just jump, high as you can. Come on, leap of faith, Bishop! On my signal.”</p><p>“What signal?”</p><p>“You won’t miss it!” The Doctor stood, aiming the gun at the globe floating high above. He guided El to where she should stand, making sure her ears were covered, as he held the gun and the communicator in his right hand.</p><p>
  <em>“Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned a mistake we made?”</em>
</p><p>“Yes, yes, big, big mistake, really huge.” The Doctor replied. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you, there’s one thing you never put in a trap? If you’re smart, if you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there is one thing you never, <em>ever </em>put in a trap.”</p><p>
  <em>“And what would that be, sir?”</em>
</p><p><em>“Me.” </em>The Doctor growled, pulling the trigger.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Flesh and Stone</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Even with her ears covered, the gun was <em>loud. </em>El hadn’t had enough time to realize what was happening, before the ringing in her ears hit, and the light cut out.</p><p>And then, the Doctor jumped, pulling the girl up with him. She didn’t know what was going on, but she could feel the wind blowing past, before they suddenly stopped, hitting something.</p><p>El blinked the lights flickering, as the Doctor let her down.</p><p>“Sorry, wasn’t sure if your legs would be powerful enough.” The Doctor apologized, looking around the area.</p><p>El frowned, at the metal floor, lights on the surface. Jumping didn’t take you to an entirely different place. “Where are we?”</p><p>“Exactly where we were.” The Doctor answered, looking at the small, circular indent in the floor. “Look up.”</p><p>El frowned, doing so, and gasped.</p><p>The maze of the dead, the labyrinthian structure through which they had been crawling, was turned on its head, looking back at her.</p><p>They were on the bottom of the Byzantium.</p><p>“We’re on the roof.” El recognized. “How are we…?”</p><p>“Gravity doesn’t exist in space,” The Doctor explained, sonicing the hatch at his feet. “Spaceships have to generate it on their own. Artificial gravity. Now, since the Byzantium’s still getting power, the artificial gravity is still getting power too. One good jump, shot out the grav-globe to create an updraft, and up here we are.” He glanced at El. “That’s why I told you to stand by me. I was fairly certain the adults would land just fine, but I wasn’t sure if because of your lighter mass the gravity would affect you as strongly or not.”</p><p>“Doctor, the statues,” Octavian looked up to the floor of the maze. “They look more like angels now.”</p><p>“Closer to the ship, more energy for them to suck up. The faster they restore.” The Doctor explained, the aperture sliding open. “Right, everybody in!”</p><p>“But we’ll fall!” El said, looking down at the deep pit that was a corridor.</p><p>The Doctor laughed. “Don’t be silly!” He jumped in, El shooting forward to catch him, but it was too late. The Doctor stood on the side of the tube, the floor, hands held out, smiling. “Gravity orientates to the floor,” He gave the surface two quick stamps with his foot, “Just like Super Mario Galaxy. …Well don’t just stand there, in, all of you!” The Doctor commanded, the others jumping in behind him.</p><p>El jumped in first, staggering disoriented as sideways suddenly became down, and her feet hit the floor. Octavian, River, and what few Clerics were left came in afterwards, as the Doctor worked the panel with the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>“The angels, presumably they can jump up too?” Octavian asked, the metal iris sealing.</p><p>“They’re here now,” The Doctor replied. An alarm began to sound, as a curved blast door began to seal. “Run!” He commanded, running over, but it was too late as it clamped shut.</p><p>“This whole place is a deathtrap!” Octavian commented.</p><p>“Well, it’s a time bomb.” The Doctor corrected. “Well, it’s a death trap inside of a time bomb. Don’t worry, I’m good with deathtraps! Nobody panic!”</p><p>El took a step forward. “Let me-“</p><p>“No!” The Doctor quickly cut her off. “You focus on dealing with the Weeping Angel that’s trying to break into your head, I’ll handle the door!”</p><p>The door through which they entered began to clang, Weeping Angels banging against the outside.</p><p>“Okay, just me then.” The Doctor pointed at the steel door against his back. “What’s through there?”</p><p>“Secondary flight deck.” River answered, staring at the exterior door in case the angels broke through.</p><p>“The security protocols are live, there’s no way to override them.” The Doctor banged against the metal, “It’s impossible.”</p><p>“How impossible?” River asked.</p><p>“Two minutes.” The Doctor answered, going to work.</p><p>The lights began to dim.</p><p>“The hull is breached and the power’s failing.” Octavian stated grimly.</p><p>“Sir, incoming!” A cleric pointed.</p><p>“Doctor, lights!” El shouted.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’m on it!” The Doctor replied, sonicing the power conduits to stimulate the electricity inside.</p><p>The lights returned, four angels now on the end of the short corridor.</p><p>“Clerics, keep watching.” Octavian ordered.</p><p>“But not the eyes!” The Doctor informed. “Anywhere but the eyes! I’ve isolated the lighting grid; they can’t drain the power from it now.”</p><p>“Good work, Doctor.” Octavian complimented, as the Doctor went back to the blast door.</p><p>“Yes, good, good.” The Doctor replied. “Good you like it so far.”</p><p>“So far?” El repeated.</p><p>“Welp, there’s only one way to open this door,” The Doctor stated, opening a small, circular keypad near the door. “And that’s by rerouting all the power through the door control… including the lights.”</p><p>El let out a frustrated sigh. “Why didn’t you do that <em>before</em>?”</p><p>“Oh, well, you know, busy day, lot of things on my mind.” The Doctor shot back. “Everybody ready?”</p><p>Octavian clenched his teeth. “Ready when you are, sir.”</p><p>“Brilliant. Clerics, keep firing on those angels.” The Doctor ordered. “It won’t hurt them, but the muzzle flashes will be just bright enough to let you see them. El,” He guided her over to the wheel on the door. “When the power goes, that’ll release, turn it counterclockwise four times.”</p><p>“Ten.” El said.</p><p>“No, four.” The Doctor corrected, turning back to the panel.</p><p>El frowned. “Yes, four.”</p><p>“Ready!” The Doctor proclaimed, activating the screwdriver.</p><p>The moment the lights went out, the place descended into a mess of flashes, gunfire, and sparks.</p><p>El turned the wheel, as the Doctor instructed, the angels getting closer with every flash.</p><p>“Open!” El called, the door sliding open a minute amount.</p><p>“Everybody through!” The Doctor ushered them through first, glancing at the angels.</p><p>The door began to slide shut as the lights returned, everyone making it into the next section of corridor. The Doctor ran to the end, sonicing the door blocking their path. It slid open slightly, and they all rushed through that one, coming into a control room of some sort, with three terminals in front of a seat.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor let out a breath, running over to the controls.</p><p>El gasped, as the metal wheel to the corridor began to turn.</p><p>Octavian reacted quickly, placing a puck-shaped device on the metal above the wheel.</p><p>“Magnetized the door.” Octavian took a step back from it, satisfied as the wheel abruptly stopped. “Nothing can turn that wheel now.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced up, saying nothing, as the wheel began to turn again, in increments.</p><p>“You’ve bought us time though, that’s good.” The Doctor darted about, taking stock of the wires and mechanical guts strewn about the place. “I’m good with time.”</p><p>“Doctor!” El pointed to another door, the wheel on it beginning to turn.</p><p>“Seal that door!” Octavian ordered, the cleric reacting quickly by pacing another device on the door. “Doctor, how long have we got?”</p><p>“Five minutes, max.” The Time Lord answered.</p><p>“Nine.” El said, looking down at the terminal.</p><p>“Five.” The Doctor corrected, glancing at her.</p><p>“Five, right.”</p><p>“Then why’d you say nine?” The Doctor asked, continuing working.</p><p>“I didn’t.” El blinked in confusion.</p><p>“We need another way out of here.” River stated, looking over her shoulder for anything that could be used as an exit.</p><p>“There isn’t one.” Octavian replied.</p><p>“Yeah there is,” The Doctor responded, “Course there is. Galaxy-class ship, goes for years between planetfalls, so-“ He snapped his fingers, “What do they need?”</p><p>River gasped knowingly. “Of course.”</p><p>“Of course what?” El repeated.</p><p>“Can we get inside?” Octavian asked, El still not getting her answer.</p><p>“Well, it’s a sealed unit, but they must’ve installed it somehow. This whole wall,” The Doctor leaned on the back wall, “Should slide up… there’s clamps!” He gasped, pushing two cabinets out of the way to get access. “Release the clamps!”</p><p>“Doctor, what is it?” El asked the Time Lord, as the clerics helped him.</p><p>“Remember when I was showing you around the TARDIS, and we stumbled on oxygen production?” The Doctor asked in response, as the wall began to slide up.</p><p>El’s jaw dropped, as she looked into the next area, a forest extending far into the distance, a light shining through at the far end. “Like the TARDIS.”</p><p>“Yeah, well… this has nothing on the TARDIS.” The Doctor huffed. “The TARDIS has <em>actual </em>plants, the ones in here are treeborgs.”</p><p>El chuckled slightly. “Eight.”</p><p>River frowned, glancing at her. “What’d you say?”</p><p>El shook her head. “Nothing.”</p><p>“Is there another exit?” The Doctor asked, clapping his hands. “Scan the architecture, we don’t have time to get lost in here.”</p><p>Octavian went to do just that, the others hanging back as he scanned.</p><p>El frowned. “What is treeborgs?”</p><p>“Trees, plus technology!” The Doctor hit a section of bark on one of the trees, revealing thin, translucent wires on the inside. “Wires become trees! There’s a whole mini-climate on the inside of the ship! Again, not outdoing the TARDIS anytime soon, but still… sucking up starlight from the outside and processing it into oxygen.”</p><p>El laughed slightly, the Doctor’s enthusiasm contagious as always. “Seven.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, pivoting about on his heel, frowning. “Seven?”</p><p>“Sorry?”</p><p>“You said seven.” The Doctor walked over to the girl.</p><p>El frowned, shaking her head. “I didn’t.”</p><p>River tilted her head slightly, realizing the Doctor was right. “Yes, you did.”</p><p><em>"Doctor?"</em> Angel Bob suddenly called over the radio.<em> "Excuse me. Hello, Doctor? Angel Bob here, sir."</em></p><p>"Ah, there you are, Angel Bob," The Doctor replied, moving to sit down casually in the white pleather chair in front of the console. "How's life? Sorry… bad subject."</p><p><em>"The Angels are wondering what you hope to achieve?"</em> ‘Bob’ asked.</p><p>"Achieve?" The Doctor repeated. "We're not achieving anything. We're just hanging.” He spun around slowly, like a kid in an office chair. “This chair’s great, El try it.” He got up, allowing the girl to sit down in it herself, and spin around. “It's nice in here. Consoles, comfy chairs, a forest... How's things with you?"</p><p><em>"The Angels are feasting, sir."</em> The angel stealing the voice of a man now dead replied. <em>"Soon we will be able to absorb enough power to consume this vessel, this world, and all the stars and worlds beyond."</em></p><p>"Well, we've got comfy chairs, did I mention?" The Doctor countered.</p><p>"<em>We have no need of comfy chairs</em>." The angel said.</p><p>"I made him say comfy chairs!" The Doctor grinned, looking to El in the chair.</p><p>The girl laughed slightly, “Six.”</p><p>The Doctor quickly sobered and went back to his conversation with the ancient entity. "Okay, well, enough chat. Here's what I want to know; <em>what have you done to El?”</em></p><p>"<em>There’s something in her eye</em>." The angel said.</p><p>El frowned, as anger seemed to radiate out from the Doctor, directed at the angels.</p><p>“What’s in her eye?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p><em>“We are.” </em>Bob answered.</p><p>The Doctor whipped around, running over to El, still sitting in the chair.</p><p>“What does he mean?” El asked, worried. “Five.” Everybody looked at her, slightly put off. “I mean… five. Fine!” She insisted.</p><p>“You’re counting.” River realized. “Back from ten.”</p><p>“River’s right, you have been for a couple of minutes.” The Doctor told her.</p><p>El frowned. “Why?”</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor answered.</p><p><em>“We shall take her.” </em>The angel proclaimed. <em>“We shall take all of you. We shall have dominion over time and space.</em></p><p>"Get a life, Bob.” The Doctor retorted. “Oops, sorry again…" The Doctor said, briefly grinning at his own joke before he continued talking. "There's power on this ship but nowhere <em>near</em> that much."</p><p>"<em>With respect, sir</em>," Angel Bob replied, "<em>There is more power on this ship than you yet understand</em>."</p><p>The sound of a strange, horrible screeching filled the room. Like metal on metal, or the souls of the damned, and so high-pitched that it seemed to mess with El’s vision.</p><p>"What was that?" River asked, jumping. “Dear God, what is it?”</p><p>"They're back," Octavian said, looking around the room gravely.</p><p><em>"It's hard to put in your terms, Doctor Song."</em> Bob replied. <em>"But as best I understand it, the Angels are laughing."</em></p><p>"Laughing?" The Doctor repeated.</p><p><em>“Because you haven’t noticed yet, sir.” </em>Angel Bob elaborated, sounding smug for being so monotone. <em>“The Doctor in the TARDIS hasn’t noticed.”</em></p><p>“Doctor-“ Octavian began.</p><p>“No, wait!” The Time Lord cut him off. “There’s something…” He looked out into the Byzantium forest. The room began to shake, something hissing. The Doctor turned around, looking up at the massive glowing crack in the wall above the entrance.</p><p>“What is that?” El asked, looking to it fearfully, as the Doctor wheeled over something to stand on.</p><p>“It’s a crack!” The Doctor answered. “No…” He breathed. “<em>The </em>crack! The crack in the wall from Hawkins!”</p><p>“What!?” El gasped.</p><p>“Joyce’s wall!” The Doctor recalled. Two parts in space time being pressed together! Only this time… much, much bigger… I thought it was the Neverwere creating the cracks… but it was just <em>using </em>them!”</p><p>“Okay, enough!” Octavian hollered, as the room shook like an earthquake. “We are moving out!”</p><p>“Right, fine.” The Doctor said, climbing onto the crate.</p><p>“Doctor!” River and El shouted, as the Time Lord began to run the screwdriver over the fissure in the universe.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’ll catch up!” The Time Lord replied.</p><p>“Not going without you!” El insisted.</p><p>“Oh, yes you are. Bishop!” The Doctor called.</p><p>“Miss Smith, Doctor Song, now!” Octavian ordered, gesturing into the forest.</p><p>River and El let out frustrated huffs, as they ran to catch up, leaving the Doctor with the crack.</p><p>“So, what are you…?” The Time Lord asked lowly, checking the readouts on the screwdriver. “Oh! That’s bad… that is definitely most very not good.” The Time Lord pressed his ear to the wall, jumping as the Weeping Angels suddenly appeared in the chamber.</p><p>The Doctor jumped down, running, before the back of his jacket suddenly caught on something.</p><p>An angel had grabbed him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. The Crack in the Skin of the Universe</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Don't normally double-upload on my workdays (tuesday, thursday, and friday) but since this one's a bit shorter, I figured I'd do it now.</p><p>Oh, and the chapters after the next should make Sarah Jane fans very happy.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The group walked through the forest, the Clerics sweeping all sides, as El walked behind River.</p><p>The girl walked uncertainly, sweat beginning to fall from her head despite the inside of the ship being rather cool, and breathing heavily, despite not really exerting herself.</p><p>River, hearing El, turned around, frowning. “El?”</p><p>The girl froze, staring ahead blankly, shaking.</p><p>“El, what’s wrong?” River came running over.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor glanced around, at the frozen angels. They had more than ample opportunity to kill him, and yet… “So, why am I not dead then?” The Time Lord wondered. He looked to his side, two angels standing in front of the crack with their arms raised, as if they were… worshiping? No… exalting. “Not so good. This isn’t even a little bit good, is it? Is that the power that brought you here?” He asked of the angels. “That’s raw time energy. That’s not power, that’s the fire at the end of the universe. And, I’ll tell you something else-“</p><p>The ship rumbled, the Doctor taking the moment to slip out of his jacket, going running.</p><p>“Never let me talk!” He threw over his shoulder, sprinting into the forest.</p><p>----------</p><p>El stood, frozen. In her own mind it felt like something was… tearing, eating away at her mind from the inside out, and she was powerless to do anything.</p><p>“El, what’s wrong?” River repeated.</p><p>“Four.” El blinked. She sat down, on one of the roots of the treeborgs. Clutching her head. It felt like something was driving a railroad spike into it.</p><p>And ever since her powers cut out back in the corridor, she was helpless to hold it back, and she curled up, lying on her side.</p><p>“Med-scanner!” River shouted, one of the clerics scrambling to help her. “Now!”</p><p>“Doctor Song, we can’t stay here.” Octavian stated, anxiously looking at the trees surrounding them.</p><p>River took the scanner from the Cleric, crouching down next to the girl, activating the scanner.</p><p>“We’ve got to keep moving.” Octavian pressed.</p><p>“We wait for the Doctor.” River stated, fixing the scanner’s band around El’s arm.</p><p>The girl, despite her aversion to medical instruments, wasn’t resisting. Something was very clearly wrong, as El lay there, staring blankly, unmoving.</p><p>“Our mission is to make this wreckage safe, and neutralize the angels, until that is achieved-” Octavian tried to tell the woman.</p><p>"Father Octavian," River interjected, not even bothering to give the man the satisfaction of a glare. “When the Doctor is in the room, your only mission is to keep him alive long enough to get everyone else home. And trust me, it's not easy.” She finally turned to look at him. “Now, if he’s dead back there, I’ll never forgive myself, and if he’s alive, I’ll never forgive him… and Doctor, you’re standing right behind me, aren’t you?”</p><p>“Oh, yeah.” The Time Lord answered, standing on a tree stump.</p><p>River gasped, turning around. “I hate you.”</p><p>“No, you don’t.” The Doctor jumped down. “Bishop, the angels are in the forest!”</p><p>“We need visual contact on every angle of approach!” Octavian commanded his men.</p><p>The Doctor ran over to the little girl slumped over on the tree.</p><p>“How’d you get past them?” River asked, as the Doctor sat on the ground by the girl’s side.</p><p>“I found a crack in the wall and told them it was the end of the universe.” The Doctor answered, looking El over.</p><p>“What was it?” El weakly asked.</p><p>“The end of the universe.” The Doctor replied. “Let’s have a look then.” He took the scanner from River, looking at the readouts in horror.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” El croaked.</p><p>“Nothing, you’re fine.” River responded.</p><p>“Everything, you’re dying.” The Doctor said, earning a glare from River. “Yes, because if we lie to her, she’ll get all better!” He glared right back, not in the mood. If a child was going to die because of him… “El,” The Doctor gulped, throwing the name around. “Something’s in your eye… What does that mean?”</p><p>“Scared.” El shivered.</p><p>“Don’t worry, sweetie.” River grabbed the girl’s hand. “Just let him think.”</p><p>“What happened?” The Doctor posed aloud. “She stared at the angel, into it’s eyes… eyes are the doors to the soul, the angel was looking out through her eyes…”</p><p>“Sir, angel incoming!” The Cleric shouted.</p><p>The Doctor gasped as he had a realization. “Oh, that’s it… it’s not trying to break in from the outside, it’s already in there<em>…</em> an image of an angel is an angel, and she’s got one on her mind… <em>in </em>her mind!” The Doctor slammed his hands over his mouth, as the full ramifications of that statement hit him.</p><p>“Three.” El croaked, the face of a Weeping Angel seared into her pupils. “…trying to get out.” She shook fearfully, her own mind, her greatest asset, was now being turned against her. “Feel it.”</p><p>“Counting,” The Doctor muttered, “Why is she counting? Bob!” He spoke into the radio. “Why is she counting?”</p><p><em>“To make her afraid, sir.” </em>Angel Bob answered.</p><p>The Doctor growled. “Why?”</p><p>
  <em>“For fun, sir.”</em>
</p><p>The moment the words came back, the Doctor, grunting inarticulately as he threw the radio to the ground, putting such force behind it the communicator shattered into a thousand pieces, went back to El’s side.</p><p>“Doctor… stop it?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor anxiously snapped his fingers, trying to think. “You shut off the screen, you interrupted the image. We need to find away to interrupt the image again. The angel’s in your eye… eye… visual centers.” The Doctor gasped. “We need to cut off the stimulus to the visual centers of your brain!”</p><p>“Doctor, she has seconds!” River read from the scanner.</p><p>“El, close your eyes!” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>“No, no…” She weakly shook her head. “Don’t want to…”</p><p>“El, that’s not you, that’s the angel!” The Doctor said. “It’s afraid. Do it, close your eyes.”</p><p>El swallowed, before forcing her eyes shut.</p><p>The scanner’s wild beeping stabilized.</p><p>“She’s normalizing…” River gasped, and the Doctor felt himself let out a sigh of relief. “You did it.”</p><p>Something in the distance crunched.</p><p>“Sir, more incoming!”</p><p>“Still weak, too dangerous to move her.” River read from the scanner.</p><p>“Can I open?” El asked.</p><p>“El, listen, because this is important.” The Doctor gulped. Telling children they were <em>that </em>close to death wasn’t easy for anyone, let alone the Doctor… but she had to know the severity of the situation. “I can fix this when we get back to the TARDIS, but if you open your eyes for more than a second now, you will die.”</p><p>“Doctor, we’re too exposed here.” Octavian stated. “We have to move on.”</p><p>“We’re too exposed everywhere, and El can’t move,” The Doctor retorted, “And anyway, that’s not the plan.”</p><p>“There’s a plan?” River asked, trying to rub El’s shoulders to keep her calm.</p><p>“Dunno yet, haven’t finished talking. Right!” He jumped up. “Father, you and your Clerics keep a close eye on El! Anything happens to her, I’ll hold every single one of you personally responsible, twice! River, you and me are going to go to the primary flight deck, which is-“ He licked his finger, holding it in the air. “That way.” He pointed into the woods, “Quarter mile straight ahead, and from there we’re gonna stabilize the wreckage, stop the angels, and get El back to the TARDIS so we can cure her.”</p><p>“How?” River asked.</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “I’ll do a thing.”</p><p>“What thing?”</p><p>“I don’t know, it’s a thing in progress, respect the thing!” The Doctor shot back. “Moving out!”</p><p>“Doctor, I’m coming with you.” Octavian insisted. “My Clerics will keep your daughter safe.”</p><p>“She’s not my daughter; why does everybody assume she’s my daughter?” The Doctor huffed. “And, anyway, I don’t need you.”</p><p>“I don’t care.” Octavian responded. “Where River Song goes, I go.”</p><p>The Time Lord clasped his hands behind his back. “Are you two engaged or something?” The Doctor wasn’t daft enough to believe that was <em>actually </em>the case, but he did notice the two talking to each other a lot in hushed whispers. He hadn’t called them out on it, until now.</p><p>“Yes. In a manner of speaking.” Octavian stated. “Marco, you’re in charge until I get back.” Octavian gestured, and River turned to walk, the Bishop following her.</p><p>“Doctor?” El called. “Can I please come?”</p><p>“No offense, Miss Smith, but you’d just slow us down.” Octavian replied.</p><p>The Doctor frowned. He’d called El that before, why? Shaking his head, he sat down next to the girl. “You’d be safer staying behind, loathe I am to admit it. I’ll be back for you soon as I can, promise.”</p><p>“…hurry.”</p><p>“I will.” The Doctor pledged. “Alright everyone, behave! And do <em>not </em>let that girl open her eyes, under any circumstances. And keep watching the forest, stop those angels from advancing. River, gonna need your computer!” He said, running off to join her.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El sat there, eyes closed, listening as the Doctor walked off. She didn’t like him leaving her like that, but she knew it tore him up inside just as much. Still, everything was going to be fine, so long as she stayed calm. The Doctor would fix everything, they’d get back to the TARDIS, safe and sound.</p><p>Two large hands gently clasped El’s, the girl stopping the twiddling of her thumbs.</p><p>“El…” The Doctor quietly said to her, so low it was almost a whisper. “You need to start trusting me, it’s never been more important.”</p><p>“Trust you already.” El replied.</p><p>Even with her eyes closed, El knew the Doctor smiled at that.</p><p>“I’m glad.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Doctor… said the crack was from Hawkins. How?”</p><p>“I don’t know yet, but I’m working that out.” He told her. “Now, listen… Remember what I told you when I picked you up in Hawkins?”</p><p>“…remember what?”</p><p>“No, that’s not…” The Doctor replied, anguished. “That’s not important. What is important is you <em>remember.</em>” He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.</p><p>“Doctor.” She stopped him before he could run away. “River… she said you were my dad.”</p><p>“Did she?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>“Yeah, but… she’s from the future… does that mean you’ll be my dad one day?”</p><p>“El…” The Doctor breathed, sounding choked up. “Nothing in this universe could ever make me happier.”</p><p>And then, the Doctor was gone.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. The Gravity of the Situation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“What’s that?” River asked, the scanner bleeping as the Doctor, Octavian, and herself walked through the woods.</p><p>“Readings from a crack in the wall.” The Time Lord answered.</p><p>“How can a crack in the wall be the end of the universe?” River asked.</p><p>“Dunno.” The Doctor replied, stepping over a root. “But here’s what I think; one day, there’s going to be a very big bang. So big, every moment in history, past and future, will crack.” That was an understatement, the reading he got from the other side seemed to show the Web of Time itself, the fundamental structure, the foundation for all time, <em>disintegrating.</em></p><p>“Is that possible?” River asked. “How?”</p><p>“How can you be engaged in a manner of speaking?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>River stopped. “Well…” She turned to look at Octavian. “Sucker for a man in uniform.”</p><p>Octavian turned around, approaching the two. “Doctor Song is in my personal custody. I released her from the maximum-security wing of the Stormcage Containment Facility four days ago and I am legally responsible for her until she completes this mission and earns her pardon.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyebrows shot up. Stormcage was the place reserved for the worst of the worst. Renegade time agents convicted of trying to ensure Hitler won the Second World War, mass murderers whose death counts numbered in the <em>billions</em>, and ‘scientists’ who made Brenner look like a pediatrician were just some of the <em>low-</em>security inmates held up in a place like that.</p><p>“Just so we understand each other.” Octavian finished, turning back around.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at River. “You were in Stormcage?” He didn’t receive an answer before the scanner started to bleep again.</p><p>“What?” River looked at it. “What is that?”</p><p>“The date, the date of the explosion where the crack begins.” The Doctor answered, looking at the screen.</p><p>“And for those of us who can’t read the base code of the universe?”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, staring as the date came out.</p><p>
  <em>11/11/1983</em>
</p><p>The Doctor looked up, “El’s time.”</p><p>
  <em>­----------</em>
</p><p>“Anything happening?” El asked, kicking her legs in anxious boredom as the Clerics stood around the perimeter.</p><p>“The angels are still grouping.” A cleric answered. “You getting this too?”</p><p>“Yep, there’s something wrong with the trees.”</p><p>“What?” El asked. “What’s wrong with the trees?”</p><p>“The angels are ripping the treeborgs apart.”</p><p>“And here! They’re taking out the lights!”</p><p>“What’s happening?” El asked fearfully.</p><p>“It’s the trees, ma’am. The trees are going out.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor stood in front of the other blast door, frowning as he looked at the handheld scanner.</p><p>“It doesn’t open from here.” Octavian stated. “But it’s the primary flight deck.” He crouched down in front of the small circular tube near the bottom of the door. “This has got to be a service or maintenance hatch or something.”</p><p>“Hurry up and open it.” River ordered, pointing her gun into the forest. “Time’s running out.”</p><p>“What? What did you say?” The Doctor looked up. “’Time’s running out.’ Is that what you said?”</p><p>“Yeah, I just meant-“ River stammered.</p><p>“I know what you meant, hush!” The Doctor ordered. “But what if it could?”</p><p>“What if what could?” River asked, out of patience.</p><p>“Time. What if time could run out?” The Doctor posited. The web of time disintegrating… no other possible explanation.</p><p>Time really <em>was </em>running out.</p><p>“Got it!” Octavian proclaimed.</p><p>­----------</p><p>“Angels advancing, sir.”</p><p>“Weapons primed, combat distance at five feet, wait for it.”</p><p>“What’s happening?” El asked, looking up.</p><p>“Hold your position and keep your eyes shut, ma’am.” Cleric Marco ordered politely.</p><p>“The ship’s not on fire, is it?” Cleric Phillip suddenly asked, light building up. Even with her eyes shut, El could see the place get brighter.</p><p>“Can’t be.” Cleric Pedro responded. “Compressors would’ve taken care of it. Marco, the angels have gone. Where’d they go?”</p><p>“The angels?” El repeated, head feeling… clearer, like the angels had simply vanished into nothing.</p><p>“This side’s clear too, sir.” Marco replied, looking at his scanner.</p><p>“There’s still movement out there, but away from us now.” Phillip reported. “It’s like they’re running.”</p><p>“…from what?”</p><p>“Phillip, Crispin,” Marco spoke up, “Need to get a closer look at that.”</p><p>“What is it?” El asked, as the two clerics ran towards the light.</p><p>----------</p><p>“No, cracks in time, time running out, it couldn’t be, it couldn’t be…” The Doctor muttered. The Time Lord’s eyes widened, as he suddenly smacked himself in the face. “El’s father!”</p><p>River looked at the Doctor, eyebrows knit together in confusion. “What?”</p><p>“Her father!” The Doctor recalled. “I ran a DNA scan on El, results came up for her mother, but her father didn’t! Time can shift, time can change, time can be rewritten…” The Doctor stared ahead, considering something. “History isn’t just fractured. It’s consuming itself. People, objects, events, being chewed up and forgotten about.”</p><p>“Don’t be ridiculous.” River shot back.</p><p>----------</p><p>“How long before they come back?” El asked.</p><p>Marco turned to her. “Your father will be back soon.”</p><p>El shook her head. “Not them. The other two.”</p><p>Marco frowned. “What other two?”</p><p>----------</p><p>“Christmas, 2009!” The Doctor recalled, suddenly raising his voice.</p><p>River did a double take. “What?”</p><p>“Christmas Day, 2009, the day I regenerated from my last face into this one!” The Doctor explained frantically. “The Master caused everybody on the planet earth to become a duplicate of himself, and then pulled Gallifrey into Earth’s orbit!”</p><p>River blinked. “So?”</p><p>“So, why does no one remember it!?” The Doctor asked. “Everybody becomes identical, and a giant orange planet appears in the sky, but nobody remembered it! No photos in the age of camera phones, no news reports saved to video, no record that anything happened at all!”</p><p>“Doctor Song,” Octavian motioned for her to crawl through the access hatch. “Go!”</p><p>River obeyed, slipping through the small hole.</p><p>“Doctor?” Octavian turned to the Time Lord.</p><p>“Entire sections of history…” The Doctor stared ahead. “Vanishing like ice cubes in water…”</p><p>--------</p><p>“Miss Smith,” Marco said, “There were no other two.”</p><p>“But… I heard you.” El frowned. “You sent Crisp-pin, then Phil-hip, then Pedro. You don’t remember them… but they were here.”</p><p>“Pedro?” Marco repeated. “Who’s Pedro?”</p><p>----------</p><p>“It’s been happening all around me and I haven’t even noticed!” The Doctor snarled to himself.</p><p>“Doctor, we have to move.” Octavian pressed.</p><p>“The CyberKing!” The Doctor recalled as well. “Giant steampunk factory robot walks over Victorian London in practically broad daylight and nobody remembers!”</p><p>“We have to move it; the angels could be here at any second.” Octavian hissed.</p><p>“Never mind the angels!” The Doctor replied. “There’s worse here than the angels!”</p><p>Octavian gasped, his weapon falling to the ground, as the Doctor spun around.</p><p>A Weeping Angel had the Bishop in a headlock.</p><p>“I beg to differ, sir.” Octavian replied, gasping for air.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, scanning the angel with the sonic screwdriver. “Let him go.”</p><p>Octavian gulped. “Well, it can’t let me go, sir. Not if you’re looking at it.”</p><p>“Can’t stop looking at it or it’ll kill you.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“It’s going to kill me anyway.” Octavian grunted. “Think it through. There’s no way out of this. You have to leave me.”</p><p>“Can’t you wriggle out?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“No.” Octavian would’ve shaken his head. “It’s too tight. You have to leave me, sir. There’s nothing you can do.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Something’s happening.” El said. “Were here; can’t remember.”</p><p>Marco shook his head. “There never were any others. They left just me to watch you.”</p><p>“…doesn’t that sound wrong?” El asked.</p><p>“What does?”</p><p>“Army of angels, one person to watch?” El stated.</p><p>“Listen,” Marco told the girl, “I need to get a closer look at whatever that light is.” El began shaking her head. “Don’t worry, I won’t get too close.”</p><p>“No, no.” El insisted. “It’ll get you too.”</p><p>“Here,” He placed something in her hands, turning it on. “Spare communicator. I’ll keep talking to you the whole way.”</p><p>“Don’t.” El protested, as Marco went towards the light.</p><p>---------</p><p>“Sir,” Octavian regrettably stated, “There’s nothing you can do.”</p><p>“You’re dead if I leave you.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Yes, yes, I’m dead.” Octavian accepted. “And before you go-“</p><p>“I’m not going!” The Doctor insisted.</p><p>“Listen to me,” Octavian pleaded. “It’s important. You can’t trust her.”</p><p>“Who?” The Doctor tilted his head.</p><p>“River Song.” The Bishop answered. “You think you know her, but you don’t. You don’t understand who or what she is.”</p><p>“Then tell me.” The Doctor said.</p><p>“I’ve already told you more than I should. Now please, you have to go… you have a daughter to take care of.”</p><p>“Just tell me why she was in Stormcage.” The Doctor pressed.</p><p>“She killed a man.” Octavian answered. “A good man, a hero to many.”</p><p>The Doctor felt a shiver run up his spine.</p><p>He knew damn well what that meant, he wasn’t stupid.</p><p>“Who?” The Time Lord asked, hoping to the heavens above it wasn’t true.</p><p>“You don’t want to know, sir.”</p><p>It was true, then.</p><p>“Who did she kill?” The Doctor pressed.</p><p>“Sir,” Octavian grunted. “The angels are coming, you have to leave me!”</p><p>“…you’ll die.”</p><p>“I will die knowing my courage did not desert me at the end.” Octavian sagely replied, acceptant of his fate. “For that I thank God… and bless the path that takes you to safety.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded minutely. The man he thought to be just a military stooge behind fancy words was showing himself to be much more. “I wish I knew you better.”</p><p>“I think, sir, you knew me at my best.”</p><p>“Ready?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>Octavian swallowed. “Content.”</p><p>The Doctor sniffed, before running for the access hatch.</p><p>The sound of crushing bones followed the Time Lord as he crawled through.</p><p>“There’s a teleport.” River stated as the Doctor made it through, sealing the hatch behind himself. “If I can get it to work, we can beam the others here.” She stood up, walking to the other side of the teleport pod. “Where’s Octavian?”</p><p>“Octavian’s dead.” The Doctor grouchily stated. “So’s that teleport, you’re wasting your time.” He took her communicator without even asking first. “I’m going to need this.”</p><p>---------</p><p>“Hello?” El spoke into the communicator. “Marco?”</p><p>
  <em>“I’m here, I’m fine. Quite close to it now.”</em>
</p><p>“Come back.” El requested. “Got your look, come back.”</p><p><em>“It’s weird looking at it.” </em>Marco replied dreamily. <em>“It feels really...” </em>The static hissed, the line going dead.</p><p>“Hello?” El spoke into the communicator anxiously. “Hello? …Marco?”</p><p><em>“Polo!” </em>The Doctor responded. <em>“Sorry, bad pun. Are you receiving me?”</em></p><p>“Doctor?” El breathed in relief.</p><p>
  <em>“Are the Clerics with you?”</em>
</p><p>El gulped. “…gone.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. <em>“El, I’m sorry, I made a colossal mistake by leaving you there.”</em></p><p>“What now?” El asked.</p><p>
  <em>“We’re on the primary flight deck, you come to us.”</em>
</p><p>“But…” El stuttered. “Can’t see.”</p><p><em>“I know.”</em> The Doctor let out a breath. “<em>Stand up?”</em></p><p>El got to her feet. “Okay…”</p><p>
  <em>“Now, I’m going to point my screwdriver at the communicator. Yours will start buzzing. Start turning around, and when it starts to sound normal, stop.”</em>
</p><p>El began shakily pivoting on the spot, listening as the sonic screwdriver buzzed through the communicator, before it went high pitched, leveling out to its normal sound.</p><p>
  <em>“Okay… now start walking in that direction.”</em>
</p><p>“But… angels.”</p><p><em>“I know but listen.” </em>The Doctor said. <em>“The angel in your mind is now going to come in handy for us. The other angels won’t kill you because they’ll think you’re one of them. But you need to get here fast, there’s time energy seeping out of that crack.”</em></p><p>El began walking.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“It’s never going to work.” River commented.</p><p>“What else have you got!?” The Doctor bellowed. “River, tell me!”</p><p>Something clanged against the ceiling, River looking up fearfully. “What’s that?”</p><p>“The angels running from the fire.” The Doctor answered. “They came here to feed on the time energy now it’s going to feed on them.” He held the sonic screwdriver up to the communicator. “El, I’m going to send something to your communicator. A proximity detector, it’ll beep if something’s in your way, just move around until the beeping stops.”</p><p>“That time energy, what’s it going to do?” River asked, going back to work at the teleport controls.</p><p>“Keep eating.” The Doctor rubbed his face.</p><p>“How do we stop it?” River inquired.</p><p>“Feed it.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Feed it what?” River looked at him properly, away from the terminal.</p><p>“A big, complicated space-time event. Should shut it.”</p><p>“An event like what?” River pressed.</p><p>“Like me, for instance!” The Doctor shouted in reply, the situation getting to him for the first time in a long time.</p><p>“Got it!” River shouted, El appearing in a flash of blue light, holding the communicator.</p><p>“El,” The Doctor ran over to her, doting over her. “You all fine, no scratches, bruises, cuts?”</p><p>“Fine.” The girl answered. “Scared.”</p><p>“Don’t worry, it’s almost over.” He snapped his fingers, “Keep those eyes shut.”</p><p>“See?” River smugly turned to the Doctor. “Told you I could get it working.”</p><p>“River Song, I could bloody well kiss you.” He replied, running back over to the terminal.</p><p>“Well, maybe when you’re older.” River sultrily replied.</p><p>Alarms began to sound, putting a damper on the mood once more.</p><p>“What’s that?” River asked.</p><p>“The angels are draining the last of the ship’s power, which means…” The Doctor turned around. “The shield’s gonna release.”</p><p>The massive blast door hissed, and whirred as it was pulled up, revealing the army of angels standing on the other side, one of them holding a communicator.</p><p>“Angel Bob, I presume?” The Doctor addressed.</p><p>"The Time Field is coming," Angel Bob 'spoke' despite the lips being perfectly still. The voice was so clear, it couldn’t be told if the voice was coming from the radio or the angel itself. "It will destroy our reality."</p><p>"And look at you all, running away.” The Doctor taunted. "What can I do for you?"</p><p>"There is a rupture in time." The angel said. "The angels calculate that if you throw yourself into it, it will close, and they will be saved."</p><p>"Yeah, yeah, could do that." The Doctor impatiently replied. "But why?"</p><p>"Your friends would also be saved." Angel Bob pointed out.</p><p>"Well, there is that." The Doctor granted.</p><p>"I've travelled in time.” River interjected, walking urgently up to the Doctor. "I'm a complicated space-time event, too. Throw me in."</p><p>"Oh, be serious." The Doctor scoffed. "I’m nine-hundred years old and have been time traveling for almost every second of it. Compared to me, these Angels are more complicated than you, and it would take every one of them to amount to me, so get a grip."</p><p>"Doctor, I can't let you do this." River said.</p><p>"No, seriously, get a grip." The Doctor repeated.</p><p>"You're not going to die here!" River pressed.</p><p>"No, I mean it.” The Doctor raised his voice, staring the angels down. "River, El, get a <em>grip</em>."</p><p>River gasped, realizing exactly what the Time Lord was posturing at.</p><p>"Sir," The Angel began, so smug that it had already won, it remained unaware of the blatant plan in the room. “The Angels need you to sacrifice yourself now."</p><p>"Thing is, <em>Bob</em>,” The Doctor said, smugly himself. “The Angels are draining all the power from this ship, every last <em>bit</em> of it, and <em>you know what</em>? I think they've forgotten where they're standing. I think they've forgotten the <em>gravity</em> of the situation. Or to put it another way, Angels…”</p><p>“You hold on and don’t let go for anything!” River instructed, making sure El’s hand was clasped on the nearby handle of a console.</p><p>The Doctor smiled tauntingly. “Night-night."</p><p>The room began to shake, and the Doctor quickly turned around, grabbing onto a railing himself. Sideways suddenly became down, as the Byzantium’s artificial gravity failed, the planet’s natural gravity taking over.</p><p>The trio hung on tightly, the Doctor and River watching as the army of Weeping Angels fell, directly into the glowing light at the new bottom of the chamber. The stone statues bounced off trees, rocks, and each other as they fell into the light, vanishing one by one.</p><p>Then, the light itself began to die down, as the crack sealed.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah…” El groaned, sitting on a rock on the beach, alien birds chirping overhead. She was wrapped in a blanket from the TARDIS, shielding her against the coldness of the Aplan beach, as she looked around, eyes open. “Hurts.”</p><p>“I know.” The Doctor replied. “I think I’ve got a few new bruises myself.” He sat down next to the girl, looking at her. “Powers holding up?”</p><p>El focused on a small rock across the beach, and lifted it, giving a satisfied nod.</p><p>“Good.” The Doctor smiled. “When the angels fell into the crack, it erased them all, including-“ He tapped her on the head, “The one responsible for putting that image in your mind. It’s not just gone. It never existed at all.”</p><p>“Then… why do I remember?” El asked, frowning in confusion.</p><p>“Well, I remember them because I’m a Time Lord.” The Doctor answered. “Our brains are hardened against memory alteration because of time shenanigans. But you…” He looked at her, smiling gently. “Are just a very special little girl. Any other human, I don’t think it would’ve worked like that.”</p><p>“The crack?” El asked. “Gone?”</p><p>The Doctor paused for a moment. “This particular one… yes. But there’s something out there that caused it… something that’s still happening. Somewhere out there.”</p><p>El yawned. “Tired.”</p><p>The Doctor hopped to his feet. “Pop off to your room in the TARDIS, I’ll be there in just a bit.”</p><p>The girl nodded, and walked over to the blue box, pushing inside.</p><p>The Doctor looked over at River, flanked by two Clerics, standing there. The Time Lord slowly walked over, coming to a stop by the woman’s side.</p><p>“You, me, handcuffs…” River held them up, her hands clasped inside, smiling. “Must it always end this way?”</p><p>The Doctor lightly chuckled at that. “What now?”</p><p>“The prison ship’s up in orbit. They’ll beam me up any second.” River answered. “I might have done enough to earn a pardon this time… we’ll see.”</p><p>“Octavian said you killed a man.” He turned to her.</p><p>River’s smile dropped, eyes becoming tinged with regret. “I did… the best man I ever knew.”</p><p>“…Who?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>River laughed. “Dangerous question. It’s a long story, Doctor, and it has to be lived, not told. No sneak peeks. Well, except for this one… You’ll see me again, quite soon. When the Pandorica Opens.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed. “The Pandorica…” He leaned over to whisper in her ear. “That’s a fairytale.”</p><p>“Doctor!” River laughed. “Aren’t we all? I’ll see you there.”</p><p>The Doctor bowed. “I look forward to it.”</p><p>“I remember it well.” Her bracelet began to beep. “Oh, there’s my ride!”</p><p>“Can I trust you, Doctor Song?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“If you like.” River laughed again. “But where’s the fun in that?” A tornado of dust kicked up around her, and she vanished, leaving the Doctor alone.</p><p>The Time Lord stood, staring out onto the Aplan ocean for a few moments, before turning to the TARDIS.</p><p>He clicked his fingers, and the doors swung open, light spilling out as he walked into his ship.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor gently set the TARDIS into motion, and despite normally decrying it as boring, the Time Lord made sure his ship was steady as it transitioned into the time vortex.</p><p>He was being terrible at this so far. El may have had extraordinary powers compared to any other human, but she was still just a child…</p><p>And the Doctor had taken her into a deathtrap knowing that.</p><p>He was supposed to be taking care of her now and any responsible adult wouldn’t have done what he did.</p><p>Then again, he was used to dealing with <em>Gallifreyan </em>children, far more capable at that age than even the most expert human.</p><p>He’d need to reevaluate his thinking… maybe even bring another human on board to let the Doctor know when he was being idiotic when it came to El’s safety.</p><p>Speaking of El…</p><p>The Doctor walked up the stairs of the platform, down the corridor to El’s room. After they had initially found it, the TARDIS had moved it closer to the control room for ease of access, next to the Doctor’s room.</p><p>The Doctor came to a stop in front of the door, and hit the button, the door sliding open quietly.</p><p>The room was dark, and there was a lump in the blankets. El must’ve been really tired. Well, she’d had a long day, no one could blame her for wanting to clock out.</p><p>The Doctor walked over, gently placing a hand on her head. Temperature fine, heart rate normal, no feelings of malice or deceit radiating from her… she was all fine now and having quite the pleasant dream if the slight smile on her face was any indicator at all.</p><p>The Doctor smiled slightly as well, removing his hand. He deliberated for a moment, before planting a kiss to her forehead. “Night-night, El.” He whispered, moving to exit her room.</p><p>“Night…” El mumbled in response. “Dad.”</p><p>The Doctor froze.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. The Wasteland of the Crimson Heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El yawned, blinking sleep out of her eyes, as she looked up to the ceiling of her bedroom. The TARDIS, sensing the girl was awake, slowly turned the lights up, bathing the room in white light tinged with just a hint of violet.</p><p>She closed her eyes, extending her mind out.</p><p><em>‘Good morning, little one.’</em> The TARDIS whispered.</p><p>“Good morning.” El replied aloud. “Where is Doctor?”</p><p>The TARDIS didn’t respond verbally, opening the door, flashing the lights in the corridors to guide her.</p><p>----------</p><p>It took a moment for El to find the Doctor, but when she did, the Time Lord was standing in front of a door, holding climbing gear and winter clothes.</p><p>“Ah, El!” The Doctor beamed as she approached. “You’re up! Was going to wake you, but busy day yesterday, thought you could use the rest.”</p><p>El nodded, and then frowned, looking over the unfamiliar tools. “What is all this?”</p><p>“Promised you ice cream yesterday, remember?” The Doctor pointed out.</p><p>“…I need this for ice cream?” El asked, furrowing her eyebrows.</p><p>“Yep! Go ahead and put this on.” The Doctor recommended, offering her the clothes. “Don’t take off your pajamas, you’ll need the extra layer.”</p><p>El titled her head as she zipped up the parka, becoming warm.</p><p>“Alright… ready?” The Doctor asked. El nodded, and the Time Lord hit the button next to the door. “El, welcome… to Scoops Mountain!”</p><p>El walked in behind the Doctor, gasping at the giant mountain made of ice cream in the room, scraping the grey sky. Had it been a mountain on earth, it would be tall enough to give Everest a run for its money. Swirls of different colors dyed the mountain, some pink, others orange, some green with brown specks, every color of the rainbow.</p><p>“And look!” The Doctor looked up, smiling, as the door shut behind them. “It’s snowing.” Tiny white crystalline specks fell from the sky. “Don’t have to worry about water, at least.”</p><p>“Snow…” El prodded the stuff that had stuck to the ground experimentally.</p><p>“Yep, show you how to play with it later.” He tried to ruffle her head. “Hm… Isn’t your head cold?”</p><p>“A little.” El replied.</p><p>“Well, pull up your hood.” The Doctor recommended, turning to the mountain. “We’ve got some climbing to do.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“See,” The Doctor grunted, lodging a pickaxe into the hardened ice cream, pulling El up after him. “I used to have all this stuff in the storerooms in their tubs.”</p><p>“What happened?” El asked, as she and the Doctor climbed.</p><p>“Figured looking through the tubs would be boring!” The Doctor answered. “This way, not only will you embark on a flavor adventure, but a mountain climbing one too! Worked all night on it.”</p><p>“Pretty.” El complimented.</p><p>“Glad you think so. Oh!” He suddenly stopped, patting around in his jacket for something. “Here we are, vanilla. Classic ice cream flavor.” He pulled a spoon out of his pocket, handing it over to El. “Just scoop it.”</p><p>“But…” El looked between the spoon and the pickaxe.</p><p>“Trust me, it’s soft enough to scoop.” The Doctor chuckled slightly.</p><p>El frowned, but did as she was told, using the spoon to take a small bit of ice cream out of the mountainside. She glanced between the small amount of ice cream on the spoon, to the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor smiled widely and nodded.</p><p>El took a breath, and took down the ice cream, eyes going wide at the coldness, and the sweetness of it.</p><p>“Good, right?” The Doctor rhetorically asked. “Now, let’s keep moving. We’ve got thirty-seven flavors and the rest of the day to go! Come along, El!”</p><p>El smiled, laughing, as they climbed up.</p><p>-----------</p><p>For hours, the two climbed. El tasted all sorts of flavors of ice cream, from the more normal earth flavors like chocolate, strawberry, and sherbet, to alien ones like Magenta (the Gallifreyan fruit).</p><p>Before long, they were at the top of the mountain.</p><p>“Whoo!” The Doctor whooped, looking around. “Look at that. Some view, isn’t it?”</p><p>“Pretty…” El breathed, staring out at the vast landscape made of ice cream before.</p><p>“So,” The Doctor rubbed his hands together, “Did you find one you like?”</p><p>“…like them all.” El said, frowning. “Can’t pick.”</p><p>“Well, fortunately for you…” The Doctor threw out his arms, gesturing around. “You’ve got plenty of all of them.” He checked his watch. “Oh, it’s almost lunch. Best pop off to the kitchen.” He turned to her. “This isn’t the stuff from Confectius, you can’t eat too much of it at once without getting an ice cream headache.”</p><p>El frowned. “How do we get down?”</p><p>The Doctor looked at her, smiling. “Trust me?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“Then hold on.” He recommended, hefting the girl onto his shoulders. “Running start, ready?”</p><p>El gasped. “You mean-“</p><p>“Don’t think, just do!” He recommended, taking a step back. He took a run-up, supporting El as he ran, before leaping off the mountaintop.</p><p>The wind billowed as the two fell, screaming.</p><p>“Wheeee!” The Doctor whooped.</p><p>The ground was approaching.</p><p>Instead of slamming into it, however, their fall slowed, until they gently hit the floor, perfectly unharmed.</p><p>El breathed heavily, looking at the Doctor.</p><p>“See?” The Doctor smiled, letting her down. “Wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So,” The Doctor began, eating at a bowl of fish custard, “The angel in your mind got me thinking… you’re quite possibly the only human in existence with psychic powers on your level, you need someone to mentor you.”</p><p>“Mentor?” El repeated, eating an eggo.</p><p>The Time Lord nodded. “Teach you how to use your powers to their fullest extent…”</p><p>El tilted her head. “You can do that?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, looking down at the fish finger on the plate, the tiny piece of food floating upwards shakily a moment later. “Time Lords,” The Doctor began, “We’re sort of the apex beings of the universe. If it can be done, we can do it, that includes psychic powers. I was never any good at the telekinetic stuff,” He admitted, “But the mental defenses… I can teach you how to improve those, if you’d like.”</p><p>El thinned her lips for a moment, thinking about it, before nodding. “Yes.”</p><p>“Brilliant.” The Doctor smiled. “We’ll start with something simple. Now, try to imagine your mind. It can be however you picture it, yourself, a palace, a little bouncy ball, whatever. Are you picturing it?”</p><p>El nodded, as an image of herself standing in a void crossed her mind.</p><p>“Now… focusing your powers, I want you to imagine a wall around yourself.” The Doctor continued. “Can be however you like, just picture a wall.”</p><p>El closed her eyes, a marble barrier surrounding her mindscape. “Okay.”</p><p>“And…” Something lightly tapped against the wall but didn’t break through. The Doctor’s eyebrows shot up. “Those are strong. Not that I was trying to break through, but blimey…”</p><p>“Did I do good?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor beamed proudly. “You did brilliant. How’s about we celebrate with a trip? Nothing dangerous, quite the opposite.”</p><p>El nodded. If the Doctor said it wouldn’t be dangerous, that meant it wouldn’t… surely?</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor went to the console room, swapping out his red bow tie and braces for the blue set again, allowing El to get into some proper clothes, before setting the TARDIS to land, the engines disengaging with a thud.</p><p>The doors opened, and the two stepped out onto an alien desert. Two gigantic moons hung in the sky, a sun nestled between them, , the air being tinted a bright red by the light bouncing off the two orbiting bodies. Wreckage of all manner of alien spacecraft was dotted about everywhere, long since inert.</p><p>“What is this?” El asked, looking around. It looked like something terrible had happened.</p><p>“The Wasteland of the Crimson Heart.” The Doctor answered, glancing back at her. “One of the biggest battlefields in history. Don’t worry, it’s long since abandoned. Nobody comes ‘round here anymore.”</p><p>“Why are we here?” El questioned.</p><p>“Figured you’d need someplace nice and quiet to have a look about.” The Doctor replied. “Someplace peaceful since your first visit to a proper alien planet was… less than calm. Also found a signal. Probably just a beacon from the battle that hasn’t been shut off. Figured we could do that, fill the rest of the day. It’ll be fun. I might even let you take something back as a souvenir-well, if it’s safe.”</p><p>The Doctor held the screwdriver, following the buzzing, as El followed along.</p><p>“What happened?” El asked, looking at the wreck of an enormous, beetle-like starship in the distance off one of the cliffs.</p><p>“There was a big ‘ol space battle up in orbit.” The Doctor answered, stepping over a bit of debris. “See, the Sontarans had built a great big planet blower-uppy thing and were going to use it on the Rutans... and then anybody else that caught their fancy.”</p><p>El raised an eyebrow.</p><p>“The two of them are at war, have been for a long time.” The Doctor elaborated. “The Sontarans are a race of clones, people who are all mostly alike each other, and the Rutans are all space-jellies that can turn into pretty much anything. Anyway, the Rutans got wind of the big planet killer, so they decided to destroy it before it could be fully completed. Thing is, the rest of the Rutan Starfleet were off fighting their own battles, and if they broke off to go after the planet killer, the Sontarans would realize what was going on, and just move the planet killer somewhere else.”</p><p>“So what did they do?” El asked.</p><p>“The Rutans gathered all the ships they could spare, most of them coming out of shipyards half-repaired, and sent them off to the planet-killer’s construction site in secret.” The Doctor explained. “Ten thousand ships on the Rutan side, five hundred thousand on the Sontarans’, plus the big planet-cracker… Like a fleet of rowboats trying to go up against an aircraft carrier and its battleship escorts.”</p><p>“Did they win?” El asked.</p><p>“…The Rutans destroyed the weapon, and the fleet.” The Doctor answered after a moment. “But everyone, on both sides… they all died.”</p><p>“Oh. That’s… stupid.”</p><p>The Doctor snorted. “War very often is. Still, the Rutans got rid of a planet killer before it could do any real harm. That’s something, I suppose. Hold on.” The Doctor stopped abruptly, eyes narrowing. “That feels like…”</p><p>The ground began to rumble, as a spacecraft, about the size of a ferryboat, and shaped like a vulture lying flat, flew overhead, going straight in the direction of-</p><p>“The TARDIS!” The Doctor shouted in alarm, breaking off into a sprint back in that direction. “Come along, El!”</p><p>However, even though the two ran as fast as they could, even they were not capable of outrunning a spaceship, and were forced to watch, as it flew away with the TARDIS. El tried to reach out to the blue box, grabbing onto it with her mind, but the clamps of the ship held it securely in place, not budging even slightly as El tried to pull.</p><p>The girl screamed, letting go, and the spaceship disappeared into space.</p><p>“Sorry…” El groaned, holding her head. “Tried.”</p><p>“I know you did, don’t worry.” The Doctor replied. “I recognized that ship...”</p><p>“What is it?” El asked.</p><p>“That’s the starship of the Claw Sansheeth of the Fifteenth Funeral Fleet.” The Doctor answered. “Galactic funeral directors, for events on planetary scales, or people of particular power. That signal I caught must’ve been them, oh I knew, <em>I knew</em> this place had been cleaned out of any distress beacons, so why did I follow it!?”</p><p>“Why’d they take the TARDIS?” El asked.</p><p>“Maybe they think I’m dead?” The Doctor frowned, looking at his watch. “There are some legends that say I die around this time period, but it’s only 2010 now, so it can’t be that.”</p><p>El blinked, slightly disoriented by the Time Lord talking about dying in such a casual manner. “Dying?”</p><p>The Doctor snorted. “Stick with me long enough, prophecies of death will start popping up every other Tuesday…”</p><p>El sighed, shaking her head. “How do we get the TARDIS back?”</p><p>“Let me think, let me think…” The Doctor looked around, muttering. “What would the Sansheeth want with the TARDIS, think, Doctor. They’re not usually hostile, war’s out of the question… why, why?”</p><p>El frowned for a moment. “Key.” She requested, holding out her hand.</p><p>“Hm?” The Doctor turned around.</p><p>“Key.” El repeated. “I can see.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, before his eyebrows shot up, and a big grin split his features. “El, you absolute genius!” He handed her over the key. “What do you need to use your powers?”</p><p>El pointed at the Doctor’s bow tie, the man unfastening it and handing it over. El tied it around her eyes like a blindfold, just barely covering her eyes, as she sat down, the TARDIS key in hand.</p><p>“Anything else?” The Time Lord inquired.</p><p>“Noise.” El stated.</p><p>“What sort of noise?”</p><p>El paused, making a static sound in response.</p><p>“Static, static…” The Doctor looked around, finding an old speaker from an announcement system on the ground. He grabbed the speaker, pressing the sonic screwdriver to the end, and hitting the button, causing the speaker to activate, producing static. El focused on the key in her hands, and her breathing steadied, as she slipped into the void.</p><p>The Doctor stood there, watching, as El breathed slowly, looking like she was sleeping sitting up. Her head tilted slightly, and her muscles twitched, as though she was trying to walk somewhere, but her body wouldn’t move.</p><p>“Say they will… end death.” El relayed.</p><p>“End death…” The Doctor repeated. “That’s not good, that is so very not good. Something’s still not right,” He muttered, “I’ve got the key with me, so they can’t get in, they need a way. Think, Doctor, what sort of technology do the Sansheeth have? Normal Class IX Hyperdrives, stun weapons in the higher energy spectrum, nothing that could breach the exterior. Why their only came to fame is the memory… weave… El, listen,” The Doctor told her. “I need you to listen, find out where they’re going!”</p><p>“Hush.” El commanded, the Doctor falling silent. “Earth.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Of course, it’s Earth, it’s always Earth. Broken subspace communications equipment and teleport components are going to be scattered all over this place, I <em>think </em>I can jiggery-pokery them into something to get us back to Earth, but I’ll need a receiver on the other side… cross that bridge when we come to it.” He muttered, beginning to look around for some components to utilize.</p><p>El’s head tilted, as she still focused herself in the void.</p><p>“Funny story about Earth, it actually doesn’t get invaded nearly as often as people think it does.” The Doctor rambled. “In fact, in the grand scheme of things, it’s a planet that gets invaded relatively rarely compared to other worlds. Why, Tivioli-“</p><p>El breathed in loudly, cutting the Doctor off. “Who is… Sarah Jane Smith?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. Smith and Jones</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Sarah Jane…” The Doctor smiled fondly, as he rigged together the makeshift teleport device. “A very old, very dear friend of mine.” The Doctor explained, bow tie fixed back around his neck as he worked. “Well, old in the sense I’ve known her for a while.” The Time Lord glanced at El. “She used to travel with me.”</p><p>El’s eyebrows raised curiously. “Really?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Long time ago… Me, her, and the Brigadier, defending the Earth.”</p><p>“Why’d she stop?” El asked, tilting her head.</p><p>The Doctor moved evasively, turning his attention to the device he’d been working on. “Well, you know, she was a young woman with a life and a career ahead of her. I couldn’t make her give that up to travel with a silly old man in a box.”</p><p>“On Earth.” El pieced together. “Sansheeth need her… why?”</p><p>“They have this device, called a memory weave.” The Doctor explained. “Normally, they use it to make constructs of the dearly departed, like a video you can say goodbye to in place of the deceased. But, it also does inanimate objects. Here, connect this to that.” The Doctor said, handing her a small cord with a plug, to be inserted on the other side of the device. “Using Sarah Jane’s memories, they can create another TARDIS key.”</p><p>“Oh!” El suddenly realized, rooting around in her pockets. “Here.”</p><p>“Nah, keep it.” The Doctor told her. “That’s yours now.”</p><p>“…really?” El asked, looking down at the tiny silver key. It looked human in design, but there was something else there, shaped like a spade, superimposed faintly over the key. The key’s actual form, if El could guess.</p><p>“Course.” The Doctor replied. “Be very bad if you got locked out of your own home.”</p><p>El smiled, placing the key back in her pocket. When they got back to the TARDIS, she would have to find a string or a chain so she could keep it around her neck. “She traveled with you; she knows about aliens?”</p><p>“Well, duh!” The Doctor replied. “Actually, she does a little bit of freelance alien investigation on the side. Part of Earth’s reputation as being a place where the downtrodden can go for a fresh start in peace is because of her work helping lost aliens integrate into human society. Course, she also deals with the occasional bad egg, but the Sansheeth are going to be prepared for her. Probably have a trap all set up to catch her.”</p><p>“How do we help?” El asked.</p><p>“With this!” The Doctor proclaimed, stepping back as the device began to beep, getting power. “Our very own El-Doctor Teleporty Thingamajig, capable of sending people across thousands of lightyears! Here,” He offered the girl his hand, standing there.</p><p>El blinked, as nothing happened. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>The Doctor let out a frustrated sigh. “It’s functioning at low capacity.” He answered. “’S what I get for trying to build a teleport out of scrap.”</p><p>“Can you fix it?” El inquired.</p><p>The Doctor ran his hand through his hair. “I can, but I don’t have the materials I need. I already cannibalized the sonic’s power source for it!” He frustratedly kicked the machine. “Ow!” His head suddenly shot up, “Although… I know a woman with something just as good.”</p><p>“What?” El asked.</p><p>“I’m rejiggering this.” The Doctor answered, rooting around in the guts of the machine. “Instead of a teleport, it’ll be a swapper.”</p><p>“Swapper?” El frowned.</p><p>“Just need to get a lock. Let me try a few pulses, and…” He muttered. “Bingo!”</p><p>“What is it?” El asked.</p><p>“A little while back, in my last face, I crashed Sarah Jane’s wedding, long story.” The Doctor answered. “One of the kids who helps her out, Clyde, he got a big dose of artron energy straight from the TARDIS’s engines. I’ve set the swapper to lock onto that, and…” A blue field of electricity crackled around the Doctor, before disappearing. “Let me just set up a telepathic link…” The Time Lord’s eyes glazed over, glancing around, before he beamed. “We’re live!”</p><p>“Let’s go!” El hopped over.</p><p>“Nope, you’re staying here.” The Doctor told her.</p><p>“What?” El demanded.</p><p>“Clyde’s going to be very confused when he suddenly appears on a planet ten-thousand light-years from his home.” The Doctor answered. “I’ll need you to stay here and keep him calm. Don’t want him to wander too far off when I need to swap back. Now,” The Doctor rubbed his temples, closing his eyes. “To make sure the other side’s clear…”</p><p><em>“Sarah Jane!” </em>The Doctor’s vision was immediately replaced with someone else’s, a human teenager running down the corridors of-was that a UNIT base? <em>"It's the Sansheeth; they're lying through their beaks! They want you and Jo! This whole thing's a trap!"</em></p><p>The teenager was talking to a slightly older woman, in her late fifties looked like, a blonde of similar age by her side. A female teenager of Indian descent stood to the rear, next to a boy who looked to be the offspring of the blonde.</p><p>These people were Sarah Jane Smith, Josephine Grant (Well, Jones now.), Rani Chandra, and Santiago Jones. The Doctor was a bit surprised to see Jo there, but then again, he supposed of any of the earthbound people, she was one of the few who knew the Doctor well.</p><p>Jo had been the first, relatively speaking. He’d met her back during when he was forced to live in exile on Earth as UNIT’s scientific advisor, she’d been brought on to be the Doctor’s assistant as he helped UNIT deal with all manner of alien invasions. Then, one day, she met a handsome scientist… and decided to be with him.</p><p>That was when the Doctor met Sarah Jane… Sarah Jane snuck aboard the TARDIS, and from that day on, they were practically inseparable. She saw the death of that Doctor and bore sight to the birth of the next. Together, they witnessed the very creation of the Daleks, stopped an ancient Egyptian god from reforming and destroying all life in the universe, and so much more. But, one day… he left her behind.</p><p>“Humans aren’t allowed on Gallifrey… so, you’ve got to go.” The Doctor had told Sarah Jane long, long ago. That day, when she walked out of the TARDIS, he wouldn’t get to see her again until his tenth incarnation, the Time Lords all dead by the Doctor’s own hand. They’d stopped aliens from using schoolchildren as organic computers, and then he left her life again. Leaving behind a few new tools to help her along in her alien investigating career, of course.</p><p>That was how Rani and Clyde fit into the picture. Clyde had become part of Sarah Jane’s little gang after the Slitheen crime family tried to use his school as a relay to drain the planet’s energy, and Rani had come on board after the Pied Piper had made an appearance in that area.</p><p>And Santiago… was a nice kid. Jo’s grandson… The Doctor really didn’t keep an eye on him as closely as he did the others.</p><p><em>"I knew it!"</em> Sarah Jane triumphantly proclaimed.</p><p><em>"Hold on!"</em> Jo pointed, excitement building. <em>"If they're lying, that means the Doctor's still alive!"</em></p><p>"Of course I'm still alive, Jo!" The Doctor replied, the telepathic connection allowing him to speak through Clyde. "I would've thought that was obvious. Catch up!"</p><p><em>"I beg your pardon?"</em> Jo looked Clyde up and down, recoiling slightly at what seemed to be Clyde’s rudeness.</p><p><em>"Clyde?"</em> Sarah Jane took a step forward, asking worriedly. <em>"Is that you?"</em></p><p>“Of course it’s not, it’s <em>me</em>!” The Doctor replied. “I’m using Clyde as a receiver. I keyed into his residual artron energy to organize a very complicated biological swap across ten thousand light years, hold on.” The Doctor shook his head, as the connection broke, and he turned to El. “Right, I’m off!” He snapped and pointed at the girl with his left hand, El gasping as she looked at it.</p><p>The Doctor looked at the hand as well, finding that the pigment had darkened significantly. “Oh, don’t worry, that’s just a partial replacement. Now, when Clyde gets here just try to keep him calm, try to explain the situation as best you can, got it?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor drew a breath. “Off we go!” He sent an impulse to the device telepathically, energy crackling over his body as the swap initiated. “Sorry Clyde!” He said, flashing between the Crimson Heart and the corridor of the UNIT facility. “But… This. Space. Is. Taken!” He shook his head as the energy died down, looking around. "Good, sorry," He smiled disarmingly, looking around. "Gosh, that was different. Hello, everyone!"</p><p>"Who are you?" Rani’s shock vanished to make way for anger. "Where's Clyde?"</p><p>"Come on, Rani, use your brain!" The Doctor replied somewhat beratingly... "Clyde and I swapped places, I'm where he was, he's where I was, which means…"</p><p>The Time Lord’s voice trailed off awkwardly.</p><p>"Oh," The Doctor faltered slightly. "Stranding a teenager on another planet with a twelve-year-old to explain the situation. One of these days, and I don’t know when, I’m going to learn some bloody impulse control.”</p><p>--------</p><p>El sat, looking at the boy who had taken the Doctor’s place.</p><p>The black teenager looked around frantically. “Where am I!? What’s going on!?”</p><p>El sat, pushing herself up, walking over. Her hand shot out, an imitation of the gesture she’d seen the Doctor perform before. “El.”</p><p>Clyde looked back at her in confusion, his hand slowly clasping around hers in acknowledgement of the gesture. “Clyde… Where am I?”</p><p>“Crimson Heart.” El answered, moving to sit back down.</p><p>“How did I get here?” He demanded, looking around.</p><p>El shrugged. “Swapped with the Doctor.”</p><p>“The Doctor!?” Clyde repeated in shock. “He’s here!? Doctor!?” He shouted, looking around.</p><p>El shook her head. “Swapped.” She repeated. “On Earth.”</p><p>“On Earth?” Clyde repeated. “And he left a little girl here?”</p><p>“Said you’d need someone to explain.” El shrugged.</p><p>“Right, okay…” Clyde rubbed his face. “And… you know the Doctor?”</p><p>El nodded. “Daughter.”</p><p>Clyde’s eyebrows shot up and his jaw dropped. That was certainly a change from the last time he saw the Time Lord.</p><p>---------</p><p>“Bring him back!” Rani demanded, glaring at the Doctor with a fire only female human teenagers could possess. Internally, the Doctor paled at the thought that a glare like that would probably be on El’s face someday. "You bring him back, whoever you are!"</p><p>"No, no, no, no, no, Rani, don't you see?" Sarah Jane turned to the young woman, quelling some of the fire, before turning back to face the Doctor. "It's you, isn't it?" The journalist asked, slightly awed, but mostly joyous as she looked at the (to her) new face of the Doctor. "Oh, you've done it again."<br/><br/>"Hello… Sarah Jane." The Doctor replied, smiling warmly, ancient eyes lighting up just as happily despite the purpose of his visit.</p><p>"Doctor?" Sarah Jane asked, though she really didn’t need to.</p><p>The Doctor’s continued smile, plus the little wave with his hand, told her that her hopes were more than well-founded.</p><p>"That's the Doctor?" Rani breathed, looking the alien man up and down.</p><p>"What Doctor?" Jo spluttered, looking between the Doctor and Sarah Jane. "<em>The </em>Doctor? My Doctor?"</p><p>"Well, he can change his face-" Sarah Jane began quickly.</p><p>"Well, I know,” Jo cut her off, “But into a baby's?"</p><p>Time Lords did tend to get slightly younger each regeneration, but as opposed to the idea of the Doctor’s visible age changing at all, Jo seemed to be commenting more on the stark contrast between her Doctor’s aura of debonair, and the current one’s… high schooler trying to look like a college professor.</p><p>"Oi, imagine it from my point of view!" The Time Lord countered. "Last time I saw you, Jo Grant, you were, what, twenty-one? Twenty-two? It's like someone baked you."</p><p>Jo gasped in mock outrage. Even after all these years, the Doctor could still read her like an open book.</p><p>“Guys, meanwhile!” Santiago suddenly spoke up, pointing to the end of the corridor.</p><p>Three bipedal vulture-like aliens, a little larger than a human, were approaching, long black cloaks swishing sinisterly as they walked.</p><p>"Ah, yes, the Claw Sansheeth of the Fifteenth Funeral fleet." The Doctor recognized, pushing through the rest of the group to approach the giant birds, staring them down. “I've been looking for you. Have you been telling people I'm dead?"</p><p>"I apologize." The leader, Azure if the Doctor remembered correctly, replied in a harsh, almost squawking voice. "The death notice was released a little too soon. Though I can rectify this… <em>immediately</em>!"</p><p>The Sansheeth’s hand shot out, a stream of red energy lancing out, striking the Doctor in the chest.</p><p>“Rest… in… peace!” Azure snarled, as the Doctor fell to the floor.</p><p>The Doctor grunted, clenching his fists as the energy crackled against every fiber of his being. The Time Lord reached out mentally, to the device he constructed, and suddenly, he was back in the wasteland, laying on his back, breathless.</p><p>“Doctor!” El ran over, worried.</p><p>The Doctor looked up at her. “Don’t worry, I’m fine!” He shot to his feet, whipping around. “Back in a tick!”</p><p>He triggered the activation again, appearing back in the corridor as Sarah Jane ushered her group through. The Doctor broke into a sprint to follow, jumping through the door.</p><p>Sarah Jane stood there, shocked again for just a moment.</p><p>“Come along, Smith!” The Doctor grabbed her hand, the woman yelping as she was pulled along. He needed to get them somewhere safe. Any old alien race could’ve come to Earth claiming the Doctor was dead, but since they were in a UNIT facility, that meant UNIT believed it… Something that would only happen if a corpse was produced, or if someone on the inside was helping the Sansheeth. "In!" He ordered, pushing a door open, ushering the others inside first. "In! In! In! In!"</p><p>"I'm sorry," A woman of Indian descent wearing a UNIT uniform approached impatiently. "Is there a problem?"</p><p>The Doctor glanced at the woman up and down, before filing in after Sarah Jane’s group, slamming it. Not to be seen as rude (the Brigadier wouldn’t let the Doctor hear the end of it) the Time Lord poked his head back out for a moment. "Sorry," He apologized to the woman. Colonel Karim, if her rank insignia and her name patch were to be believed. "I was… slamming it."</p><p>The Doctor slammed the door shut again, putting his back to the metal, clapping. "Right! Now, we need to lock it! Come on, use the sonic lipstick."</p><p>"Haven't you got the screwdriver?" Sarah Jane inquired, moving to lock the door with her own sonic device regardless. It was much more compact than the screwdriver, shaped like a tube of lipstick, a red emitter at the end of the tube.</p><p>“Used it to build the swapper." The Doctor answered, moving out of the way.</p><p>“They do sonic lipsticks now!?” Jo breathed, sounding like she already knew what to put on her Christmas list. The Doctor would have to consider it.</p><p>"Right then.” The Doctor pushed off the wall. “Sorry to be quick; Jo, Sarah, I need you."</p><p>"Need us for what?" Jo asked, smiling excitedly.</p><p>"Remember the old days when we'd go zooming off to faraway worlds?" The Doctor asked, taking both women’s hands in his. “Oh, and there’s someone I’d like you to meet.” He said, before triggering the device mentally again, vanishing in blue light.</p><p>Jo and Sarah Jane gasped, as they suddenly appeared in the red-tinted wasteland, the swapper beeping impatiently behind them all.</p><p>"Right.” The Doctor let Sarah Jane and Jo go, doting over the machine as it beeped, tearing open the panel. "Now then, let's get you working properly…"</p><p>"Where are we?" Jo asked, looking around in shock.</p><p>"Crimson Heart." El answered as the swapper stopped beeping, Jo and Sarah Jane turning around to face her.</p><p>"Planet Earth's that way." The Doctor pointed straight up, holding out his other hand. "Bit of a long walk. Sonic, please!" Sarah Jane slapped it down into the Doctor’s hand, as she turned to look at the landscape before her as well.</p><p>"Wow!" Jo breathed. "Oh, so many years since I was on another planet…"</p><p>"Me too." Sarah Jane smiled, feeling the light of the alien sun hitting her skin for the first time in many, many years. Finally, at that point, she looked at El. "Well, hello…” She smiled politely. “I’m Sarah Jane Smith, and you are?"</p><p>"El.” She answered, holding out her hand, Sarah Jane taking it.</p><p>“You’ve been working on your manners!” The Doctor recognized. “I didn’t even have to tell you!” He proudly smiled, still working on the swapper.</p><p>"Uhm, Doctor…” Sarah Jane turned to the Time Lord. “I know I said your companions were getting younger, but I didn’t quite expect you to take it so far…”</p><p>“She’s not my companion.” The Doctor replied. “I’m taking care of her. I’m her caretaker.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the Doctor, awestruck. “You… taking care of a child?”</p><p>“Well, I’ve done it before, I am nine-hundred years old!” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Hi, Jo Jones.” The woman introduced herself as well. “I used to travel with the Doctor, too.”</p><p>El raised her eyebrows. “Like her?”</p><p>“Right, well, a little bit before if I’m not boasting.” Jo humbly replied.</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor clapped his hands, grabbing their attention. “I have questions, but number one is this; Who on Earth told you I was dead?”</p><p>“That,” Jo stammered, snapping her fingers, “That colonel!”</p><p>“Karim?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“That’s her name!” Jo confirmed.</p><p>“Great,” The Doctor spun back around, tending to the device. “Just what I need. A UNIT colonel with the TARDIS.” He shook his head. “Sarah, could you come help me please?”</p><p>The woman nodded, moving over to help the Doctor.</p><p>“Here, hold that.” The Time Lord instructed, pointing to a wire hanging. Sarah Jane held it in place, allowing the Doctor to solder it.</p><p>“UNIT…” El frowned. “Took the TARDIS? Thought they were good guys.”</p><p>“Depends.” The Doctor replied. “UNIT’s screening process doesn’t always filter out the bad eggs, and they’ve done some… unsavory things in the name of ‘homeworld security.’” The space fell into silence, as the Doctor worked, frowning.</p><p>A solid five minutes passed, before Sarah Jane suddenly spoke up. “Did it hurt?” She asked, causing the Doctor to glance over at her in confusion. “When you regenerated? That last body of yours… was he alright, in the end?”</p><p>El didn’t know precisely what the word itself meant but given that the Doctor had mentioned he had different faces in the past, she assumed it was connected to that.</p><p>The Doctor thinned his lips, focusing on the device. “…it always hurts.”</p><p>“So, how did you end up in this place?” Sarah Jane inquired, as the Doctor pointed her to the next component of the device.</p><p>“Well, El and I had a busy day yesterday, so I thought someplace nice and quiet would be a good change of pace.” The Doctor answered. “The Sansheeth lured me in with a distress beacon, and then they made off with the TARDIS.”</p><p>“…Did you think I was stupid?” Jo suddenly spoke up, the other three all looking at her in surprise.</p><p>“Why do you say that?” The Doctor asked, not looking at her.</p><p>“Well…” Jo huffed slightly. “I was a bit dumb back then. Still am, I suppose.”</p><p>The Doctor turned on his heel, facing her. “Now what in the <em>world</em> would make you think that, ever, ever, <em>ever</em>?” The Time Lord asked, walking over, sitting down on the rock next to her.</p><p>“We’d been traveling the Amazon for months.” Jo regaled, looking at the man across from her. "Eventually, we reached a village in Cristalino, and it was the only place in thousands of miles that had a telephone, so I called you. I just wanted to say hello…. and they told me that you'd left. Left UNIT."</p><p>The Doctor sat silently, looking down at the ground. That was… after Sarah Jane had left the TARDIS, the Doctor being recalled to Gallifrey. He didn’t mean to just abandon her, not the closest thing he had to a daughter back during his third life, but… the one after that just didn’t hold the same attachment. That was one of the things so scary about regenerating, it not only changed your tastes and appearances, but it also changed your relationships. Good friends could become enemies, which could become lovers in the life after that.</p><p>"Never came back." Jo continued, trembling. "So I waited. And waited… because you said you'd see me again. You did; I asked you, and you said yes. You promised… So, I thought… one day, I'd hear that sound… deep in the jungle. That funny wheezing noise… and there would be a big blue box, right in the middle of the rainforest. 'Cause you wouldn't just leave, not forever… not <em>me</em>…" She smiled at him sadly, holding back tears.</p><p>The Doctor could only smile just as bittersweetly in response. Even when they had lives of their own… the Doctor’s friends would always be there, ready to jump in the magical box, ready to see the universe.</p><p>"I've waited my whole silly life…" Jo sniffled, wiping her face.</p><p>"Oh, but you're an idiot." The Doctor replied, earning a glance from El.</p><p>"Well, there we have it!" Jo threw her hands up</p><p>"No, but don't you see; how could I ever <em>find </em>you?" The Doctor rhetorically asked, leaning forward, throwing up a hand of his own. “You've spent the past forty years living in huts! Climbing up trees, tearing down barricades… You've done everything; from flying kites on Kilimanjaro to sailing down the Yangtze in a tea chest. Not even the TARDIS could pin you down!" He pointed at her.</p><p>"Hold on…" Jo looked at the Doctor curiously. "I <em>did </em>sail down the Yangtze in a tea chest… how did you know?"<br/><br/>"And that family…" The Doctor looked to the ground, smiling. "All seven kids. Twelve grandchildren, thirteenth on his way; he's dyslexic, but that'll be fine.” He pointed. “Great swimmer…"</p><p>"So… you've been watching me?" Jo breathed. "All this time?”</p><p>"No." The Doctor clasped his hands solemnly, shaking his head. "Because you're right, I don't look back. I can't.” It hurt too much. The thing about Time Lords… they didn’t really age, they regenerate. The Doctor would remain forever static in whatever body he was on, while everybody else aged around him. He saw it happen with Sarah Jane…</p><p>And he’ll see it happen with El.</p><p>"But the last time I was dying.” The Doctor looked up, a new brightness entering his eyes, as he looked upon Jo. "I looked back on all of you. Every single one. And I was so <em>proud</em>…"</p><p>The Tenth Doctor hadn’t wanted to go in his final moments, so he didn’t. When the Doctor was dying that go around, he took the TARDIS, visiting old friends. Not just the ones particular to that body, but every last one.</p><p>"It really is you… isn't it?" Jo breathed, sobbing. Not out of sadness, no, but joy.</p><p>The Doctor smiled gently, and for a split second, El tilted her head, as she thought she saw the face of an older gentleman, about forty or fifty with curly silver hair and a distinctive nose, briefly replace her Doctor, before the Time Lord went back to normal.</p><p>“Hello.” The Doctor waved.</p><p>Sarah Jane blew on her whistle, startling them. “Sorry!” She apologized. “But we’ve got that lot at home with the Sansheeth!”</p><p>The Doctor held up a finger, shooting to his feet. “Yes, yes, a-and I still need you, Jo. That bag; I smell blackcurrant, is it Buku oil?”</p><p>“Hand-picked,” Jo came walking over, rooting around her bag, before handing the Doctor a small jar. “From Mozambique.”</p><p>“Perfect,” The Doctor unscrewed the top of the jar, before removing the top of the swapper. “These circuits need conductivity. El, stand close.” He ordered, the girl moving to his side. “Wonderful, little tiddly drop-“ He dumped the entire jar out, placing the top back on the swapper, “And that’ll do! Now, we can lock on to Clyde on Earth, without having to swap out! Right,” He grabbed onto Jo’s hand, El next to him, and she grabbed Sarah Jane’s hand.</p><p>The Doctor blinked, sending the mental command, before they appeared back in the corridor of the UNIT base.</p><p>El staggered, shaking her head, looking around. That was <em>not </em>a fun way to travel, by any means. If felt like her stomach had been turned upside down, inside out, knotted into a pretzel for good measure, then rung out like a towel</p><p>“You okay?” The Doctor doted over her momentarily, the girl nodding. “Right, now, where-?”</p><p>“DOCTOR!” Clyde shouted, the voice coming from the vent.</p><p>“Whoops, okay, maybe leaving Clyde there wasn’t a good idea after all!” The Doctor corrected himself.</p><p>Sarah Jane applied the sonic lipstick to the screws holding the cover in place, and the Doctor pulled it off, climbing in. “El, stay here!” He said, climbing in.</p><p>El sighed. Getting left behind was a common trend today.</p><p>A shadow casted across the wall, and the girl whipped around, seeing the alien bird approaching, malice radiating off it.</p><p>Reacting quickly, El threw her hands out, the vulture hitting an invisible barrier.</p><p>“Impudent child!” Another Sansheeth snarled, throwing out its hands.</p><p>El hadn’t enough time to react before the red stream of electricity struck her, sending her to the ground, unconscious.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. The Funeral of the Doctor</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“El!” The Doctor called, El’s vision clearing as she woke up. “El, you okay!?”</p><p>“Hurts…” She croaked, the Doctor doting over her.</p><p>“Yeah, directed particle stream, plays havoc on the synapses. Can you stand?” He asked, helping El to her feet.</p><p>The girl glanced, at the three humans by the Doctor’s side… and the short, stout, and blue alien with three long fringes coming out of the back of its head.</p><p>“Who-?” She asked.</p><p>“El, you already know Clyde, these two are Santiago and Rani. And a Groske. Don’t worry about the Groske, he’s with us.” He pointed to each one respectively. “Proper introductions later, the Sansheeth have Sarah and Jo.”</p><p>El looked around, noting that the two older women were not present, and her heart sank, thinking about how the Doctor would react.</p><p>“I-I tried-“ She stammered.</p><p>“I know.” The Doctor kindly replied. “But, no matter how strong psychic powers are, nothing’s able to counter the old element of surprise.” Something whirred overhead, and the Doctor worriedly looked up. “It’s started…” He glanced at the people behind him. “Come along, everyone!”</p><p>The group sprinted down the corridors. Turning the corner, the group came to a set of two, heavy metal doors set into the wall.</p><p>“No, no,” The Doctor banged against the door. “They’ve sealed it off!”</p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane shouted from inside the room. “They’ve got the TARDIS, and a Memory Weave!”</p><p>“Yep, I know.” The Doctor replied, trying to work at the door controls. “Augh, why isn’t it working!?”</p><p>“Stand back.” El ordered, narrowing her eyes. The doors clinked, moving just slightly, but not buckling, and El staggered back, shaking her head disoriented.</p><p>“What is it?” The Doctor inquired of her.</p><p>“…tired?” El proposed, not really knowing the answer herself.</p><p>“Hmm…” The Doctor licked the girl’s forehead, El spluttering in surprise. “Fighting off that Weeping Angel drained you dry; you’re still not back up to a hundred-percent. Okay, no screwdriver, no way to break down the door…” The Doctor closed his eyes, leaning against the metal in despair.</p><p>For the first time in a long while, he was truly helpless.</p><p>“The key!” Azure proclaimed almost reverently. “It takes shape!”</p><p>They were going to get into the TARDIS, and even though they wouldn’t know how to fly it at first… the Doctor had learned by doing as well. It was over. Finished.</p><p>“What do we do, Doctor?” Clyde desperately asked. “What do we do!?”</p><p>Faint vworping, the ghostly sound of the TARDIS, echoed from in the other room as the key took shape.</p><p>“The Sansheeth are making them remember, there’s nothing I can do from here to stop it.” The Doctor muttered, resigned. Suddenly, his head shot up, and he pressed back up on the door. “Unless… Quick, you two, remember it all!”</p><p>“That’s the problem, Doctor!” Jo replied.</p><p>“What are you doing?” El inquired.</p><p>“No, but don’t you see!?” The Doctor asked. “They’ve set your minds to focus on memories of the TARDIS, but they only need enough to generate the key! The thing is, they’re the intruders into your mind, not the other way around!”</p><p>El gasped, realizing what the Doctor was getting at. “You control it!” The girl said to the two on the inside.</p><p>“Exactly what she said!” The Doctor said. “So, you two… give it to them. Give it <em>all</em> to them. Every good day, every bad day, every day in between.”</p><p>“What’s he doing!?” Karim hollered.</p><p>”Your memories are more powerful than anything else! They’re not just things that happened, they’re things that all came together in just the right way to make you who you are now! So… remember every monster, every alien, every second spent saving the peoples of the universe and every star and every planet. But most importantly… remember every <em>Doctor.</em>”</p><p>“I…” Sarah Jane breathed. “I remember!”</p><p>Images flashed across the minds of the women strapped into the memory weave. For Sarah Jane, it was the Tenth Doctor first, their meeting in the school after so many years thinking he was dead. Then, it went back. To the Death Zone on Gallifrey, the Loch Ness Monster, the Android Invasion, the Wirrn on Nerva Beacon, Davros the creator of the Daleks…</p><p>And the Fourth Doctor…</p><p><em>Her</em> Doctor, with the curly brown hair, toothy disarming grin, and scarf longer than he was tall five times over.</p><p>“No!” Karim yelled, as the alarms from the memory signaled the building overload.</p><p>“I remember…” Jo breathed as well.</p><p>The Daleks in the 22<sup>nd</sup> century, the Sea Devils climbing out of the ocean, the Autons, the Master, the Brigadier…</p><p>And her Doctor. The Third Doctor, the handsome older man with curly silver hair, dapper velvet suit and cape, and the skills to rival even the most trained martial arts master.</p><p>“We need that key!” Karim screeched. “What is happening!?”</p><p>“The device is overloading… too many memories!” Azure squawked in alarm.</p><p>The memory weave sparked, the conversion from memory to physical feeding back on the device as the false TARDIS key began to glow with far too much power. The systems keeping the clamps locked disengaged with the overload, a safety feature the Sansheeth hadn’t removed now backfiring upon them, as the two women sprung out.</p><p>“Well, now they’re in trouble.” The Doctor remarked, hearing the alarms sound. “The weave’s going to blow up and take them with it…”</p><p>“I can’t disengage the deadlock!” Karim shouted.</p><p>Deadlock seal, the one thing capable of going against a sonic device… that too was now backfiring spectacularly.</p><p>“I can’t open it…” The Doctor looked on the door with anguish.</p><p>“I just want to say…” Jo swallowed, tearing up. “I’m so glad I got to see you again. I waited all this time… and it was <em>worth it.</em> Every second.” The woman let out a sorrowful laugh. “Funny thing is… your funeral turned out to be ours in the end.”</p><p>The Doctor’s head shot up. “My funeral.”</p><p>“Doctor, if you’re taking in children now…” Sarah Jane sniffed. “Take care of Luke for me… please.”</p><p>The Doctor’s brain went into overdrive. UNIT, despite only ever really meeting two Time Lords, had protocols in place to deal with the death of one. There were whole civilizations out there that’d rip Earth to shreds just for one cell, and UNIT knew that. So, procedure in place (drafted up with the Doctor’s own advice, he might add) was to put the body in a lead-lined coffin, so that the body couldn’t be detected with sensors, and large enough so that any excess regeneration energy would be able to dissipate safely. If Karim had wanted to make it look legit, she would’ve stuck to the protocol.</p><p>“No, no, no! Don’t you see!? it’s my funeral!” The Doctor spoke up. “<em>My </em>funeral!”</p><p>Sarah Jane and Jo gasped. “The lead-lined coffin!” They echoed in unison.</p><p>“How much time have they got?” The Doctor turned to the Groske.</p><p>“Big bang…” The Groske felt around the inside of his mouth. “Ten seconds.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes went comically large, as he grabbed El, pulling her around the corner, the others following. The alarms grew louder and louder, before they were cut off with a resounding bang, like Thor himself had decided to show up to the party, and the sprinklers popped off, the fire alarm ringing.</p><p>The Doctor coughed, wafting away smoke as he came back around the corner, El holding onto his hand for dear life.</p><p>The Groske sniffed as they proceeded into the memory weave chamber. The entire room was charred, many parts still on fire, but the TARDIS stood completely unscathed in the corner, the large box that had been the Doctor’s fake coffin in front of it.</p><p>“Smells like roast chicken.” The blue short alien remarked.</p><p>El frowned. “What is chicken?”</p><p>“Good meat. Tasty.” The Groske answered, as the Doctor opened the lid of the coffin. “Always roast, never grill. Fry… sometimes.”</p><p>He smiled, looking at the two hiding inside, a little shaken up, but otherwise fine. “Well… anyone need a lift home?”</p><p>----------</p><p>“Attention:” A voice from the attic of 13 Bannerman Road, Sarah Jane Smith’s residence, announced, what looked like a fireplace opening up to reveal a computer of capability far beyond the current time inside, as the TARDIS materialized on the upper stair of the attic. “Temporal flux escalating.”</p><p>The engines disengaged with a thud.</p><p>“The TARDIS has landed.”</p><p>The doors swung open, Clyde stepping out first, carrying a grey duffel bag. “Whoa…” The teenager breathed, looking around, stunned. “It’s Bannerman Road!” The Doctor, and Sarah Jane herself, had testified to the TARDIS’s travel capabilities on the way back, but hearing about it and experiencing it were two different things. “Never get used to that…” He shook his head, stepping down to the slightly lower level of the attic.</p><p>“Mister Smith,” Rani directed to the computer as she followed Clyde out, “You’re in big trouble! Those Sansheeth were the bad guys!”</p><p>“It transpires, Rani,” Mister Smith replied, screen pulsating in a slowly changing fractal rainbow pattern as… he, let’s go with he, spoke. “That you encountered a rogue element.” He explained, as Santiago stepped out, stunned at the presence of the talking computer. “The Wide Wing of the High Sansheeth Nest has already been notified and sends its apologies.”</p><p>“No… way!” Santiago breathed. “You’ve got a talking computer!? …that’s it, I’m giving up.”</p><p>---------</p><p>Jo strode around the mid-level of the console room, smiling so widely it looked like her face could freeze up at any moment. “Still the same old TARDIS. Even smells the same…” She drew in a breath. “Nope! Got to say goodbye… else, I’d stay here forever. Besides, I probably couldn’t keep up anymore… get you into trouble with the Time Lords.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at El, gently sending her a mental command to stay silent about the topic, before he smiled back at Jo. “Yeah… After all these years,” He drew the woman into an affectionate hug, “It was wonderful to see you again, Jo.”</p><p>“Well!” The woman laughed, as the Doctor pulled back. “The Doctor I knew certainly never did that!” She turned to El. “And I know we didn’t speak much, but it was lovely meeting you too.”</p><p>El returned the smile with a shy one of her own. “Goodbye, miss Jo.”</p><p>“Well,” She drew in a breath. “No time to waste! Better head out. Santiago and I are going to Norway by hovercraft!” She threw over her shoulder, as she left the ship.</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “That’s… not a bad idea for a trip. Gonna have to write that down.”</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane breathed in, leaning, back against the console. “Where are you off to next?”</p><p>The Doctor looked at her. “Actually… I figured El and I might… stay the night.” He suggested, smiling awkwardly.</p><p>El looked at the Doctor, hopeful. She didn’t want to leave all the new people she’d met just yet.</p><p>Sarah Jane straightened out, looking surprised. “Really? This coming from the Time Lord who repeatedly stated he ‘didn’t do domestics?'”</p><p>“Yeah, I don’t see why not.” The Doctor responded. “It’s been a while since you and I just… talked. Besides,” His eyes flickered over to El, “I don’t think she’s ready to part with Rani and Clyde just yet.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to El as well, before chuckling slightly at the girl’s hyperactive excitement. “Alright… but!” She pointed. “No sleeping in the TARDIS. If I wake up tomorrow and you’ve vanished, your next funeral’s going to be real.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed, giving a mock-salute. He’d never up and bail like that. Never do that to any of his friends…</p><p>And certainly not to his Sarah Jane.</p>
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<a name="section0027"><h2>27. Back to the TARDIS</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>You're either going to cringe or laugh at the title of Sarah Jane's book. Just a forewarning.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El walked, curiously looking around the attic of 13 Bannerman Road.</p><p>“So, El.” Clyde addressed, hopping on the heels of his feet. “What do you like to do for fun?”</p><p>El tilted her head, considering the question for the moment. Traveling with the Doctor was certainly fun, but… well, it was just her life at this point. When Clyde meant fun, she assumed he meant what she liked to do when she and the Doctor weren’t running around.</p><p>But, as she had only been on the TARDIS for a few nights, she didn’t really find a lot of things to do to unwind in that time. The trip from Hawkins to Starship UK was instant, then the trip from there to London in WWII was much of the same, and then the Doctor had landed in the Delirium Archive. Aside from the fairytale he’d read her, and when he told her about Susan, they really hadn’t spent much time on the TARDIS.</p><p>“Fun…” El considered aloud.</p><p>“Fun, miss El.” Mister Smith spoke up, having not gone on standby since Sarah Jane’s return. “Recreational activities typically performed for personal enjoyment or amusement.”</p><p>“You know, like video games, drawing, or… a movie.” Clyde told her. “You do any of those?”</p><p>El shook her head.</p><p>“Okay,” Clyde stood up, “Allow me to give you a first-class education in fun. Clyde Langer style.”</p><p>“Your style of ‘fun’ usually ends up with something broken.” Rani replied with dripping sarcasm.</p><p>El breathed in, face lighting up. “We get to break things!?”</p><p>Clyde looked to Rani, grinning.</p><p>“No.” Mister Smith quickly laid down the law. “Sarah Jane would be most disappointed if any one of you were to destroy something, or more severely, injure yourselves.”</p><p>Clyde huffed, crossing his arms. “Spoilsport.”</p><p>El matched it. “Meanie.”</p><p>“…However, virtual destruction is not out of the question.” The computer stated two wireless controllers materializing.</p><p>“Nice…” Clyde grinned, taking one and handing the other to El. “What do we start with?”</p><p>“Might I suggest Hello Kitty Online?”</p><p>Clyde rolled his eyes as he sat on the steps across from the computer. “Come on, for her first video game? How about Halo? Or Mario? Or literally anything else?”</p><p>Rani smiled sarcastically, patting Clyde on the shoulders. “He was suggesting it for you.”</p><p>“She is correct.”</p><p>Clyde’s face went beet-red, as Rani laughed, El looking on, not getting the joke.</p><p>“Stick with us, kid.” Rani said. “You’ll turn out alright.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane said nonchalantly to the Doctor, sitting across from the Time Lord with a cup of tea. “When were you going to tell me you adopted Jane Ives?”</p><p>The Doctor, who had been taking down his tea at the time, coughed, spitting it back out in his cup. “Where… where did you get that idea?”</p><p>Sarah Jane cocked her head, an ‘I’m not stupid’ look on her face. “UNIT gets called in to an American facility doing highly unethical tests by a mysterious man in clothes no sane person would wear, that person gives an unidentified alien life form a scolding and sends it running, and then disappears without a trace? Who else would it be?”</p><p>The Doctor laughed slightly at that. “Yeah… good point. If it’s any helps, I was already planning to come ‘round before things happened, and this is me, telling you now.”</p><p>Sarah Jane smiled back. “It just took the Sansheeth faking your death to do so.”</p><p>“El and I were busy.” The Doctor defended. “You know how it is on the TARDIS, one adventure to the next with little pause.”</p><p>“Don’t I know…” The woman shook her head, before raising an eyebrow at the Doctor. “El?”</p><p>“They called her Eleven, I said she needed a name, not a number, and it stuck.” The Doctor answered. “How did you find out?”</p><p>“Hang on,” She got to her feet, going to the bookshelf at the other end of the sitting room, “I think I have a copy around here somewhere… ah.” She pulled out a book, coming back over, presenting it to the Doctor.</p><p><em>Stranger Things</em> the title read, <em>by S.J. Smith.</em></p><p>“You wrote a book on it?” The Doctor looked up.</p><p>Sarah Jane nodded. “At first, it was just a small editorial… and then it grew into-“ She gestured to the book. “A twenty-five chapter expose of the horrors surrounding Hawkins Laboratory, the experiments performed there, and all the people involved.”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at the book, quickly flipping through it. “Fifteen’s a bit of a drag, but not bad.” He held up the book. “How’d you get all that information?”</p><p>“UNIT seized everything in the lab, including the documentation.” Sarah Jane answered. “Alistair was still fairly high up in UNIT back then, remember? After he learned that children had been involved… He wanted it all out there, consequences be damned.”</p><p>“Good.” The Doctor smiled, proud of the two of his greatest friends. “I notice, since this was published in eighty-five, it doesn’t mention what happened to Brenner.” He said, unspoken question behind his words.</p><p>“Died.” Sarah Jane answered, steeling her jaw. “People who do things to children don’t last long in prison. Especially not a UNIT supermax.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded, setting the book down on the coffee table.</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane began, looking to the Doctor’s eyes. “What were you coming to talk to me about?”</p><p>The Doctor tugged his bow tie. “What? I can’t pop in every now and then?”</p><p>Sarah Jane gave a sort of melancholy smile. “You’re not the kind of Doctor that does house visits.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. “No. I’m not…” He flopped down on the couch. He licked his lips, thinking about how to phrase the question. “Luke… the first time he called you mum; …how did you react?”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked surprised at the inquiry for a moment, before thinking about how to respond. “Mostly? I was joyed beyond belief…” She honestly answered.</p><p>“You know, you never did tell me how that happened.” The Doctor remarked.</p><p>Sarah Jane leaned back, throwing one leg over the other. “I was investigating the Bubble Shock factory. A species called the Bane were using the drink as a way to initiate mind control over the population. But, for whatever reason, two percent of people were immune to the soda’s effects. So, they created an Archetype, a ‘perfect human’ they could use as a test subject. I rescued him.”</p><p>“And then you named him Luke.” The Doctor put together. “Explains why I didn’t see him at the school, you must’ve found him after that, almost fully grown. Where is he now?”</p><p>“Oxford.” Sarah Jane smiled. “I’m so proud of him. But, enough about that, why did you ask?”</p><p>“Because…” The Doctor swallowed, drawing a breath. “Last night, after our misadventure on the Byzantium, El… I don’t even realize if she knew she did it because she was tired as all hell and a Weeping Angel had infected her mind and-“</p><p>“Doctor,” Sarah Jane cut off the motor-mouthing Time Lord, “Keep calm… what did she do?”</p><p>“El… she called me ‘dad.’” The Doctor answered</p><p>“Oh, Doctor…” Sarah Jane beamed. “I’m happy for you.”</p><p>“This isn’t a good thing.” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Oh?” Sarah Jane crossed her arms demandingly. “How so?”</p><p>“Because,” The Doctor reasoned, “She already has a mother and a father back on Earth. I don’t… I can’t let her start calling me that, it wouldn’t be fair to them.”</p><p>Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “You do know what happened to Terry Ives, yes?”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Died in childbirth.” She answered. “Her father… nobody knows. Even UNIT tried tracking him down, but nothing. She doesn’t have anyone else.”</p><p>“Oh… the sentiment remains.”</p><p>Sarah Jane remained silent for a moment. “You know what it sounds like to me?”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“It sounds to me like you’re making excuses.”</p><p>The Doctor scoffed defensively. “I am the Doctor. I don’t make excuses; I tell the truth.”</p><p>“Doctor,” Sarah Jane fixed the Time Lord with a knowing look. “I may not be a nine-hundred-year-old super intelligent alien, but I know what I’m talking about.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Really?” He asked, trying to call her bluff.</p><p>“You were already a parent.” She began, trying not to phrase it in a way that would hurt him however accidentally. “I met your granddaughter once, remember? After the Time War, becoming the last of your species…” Sarah Jane swallowed, as the Doctor covered his eyes to keep from looking at her. “I may never experience pain like that in my life, but I understand loss, I do. That’s why you’re scared. You don’t want to get attached because if you do, and something happens… it would break your hearts all over again.”</p><p>The Doctor said nothing.</p><p>“Doctor?”</p><p>“You’re…” The Doctor began, sounding choked up. “You’re right. You are absolutely right… but I can’t let myself go through that. Not again.”</p><p>“Doctor, heartbreak is a terrible, terrible thing.” Sarah Jane sympathized, taking one of his hands in her own. “I know… but think. Our lives are like… piles, of good and bad things. The good things don’t lessen the pain of the bad, but the bad things don’t spoil the good things either. Even if something <em>does </em>go wrong, and I’m not saying it will… don’t you think you’d be happier, El too, if you took this opportunity?”</p><p>“You’re saying…” The Doctor began. “You’re saying I should try?”</p><p>She smiled kindly. “I tried with Luke and look at where it got me.”</p><p>“Yeah… I should try.” The Doctor mumbled, staring off into space. “There is,” He turned to her, “One more thing.”</p><p>“Oh?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“I’ve…” The Doctor covered his mouth. “Gallifreyan children are a lot more capable of human children, even at a younger age. She can handle herself, when it comes to psychic powers and the lot, but… I keep making the mistake that she’s like a Gallifreyan child, or even an adult human, putting her in situations too dangerous for her.” He told her.</p><p>Sarah Jane inhaled. “What are you saying?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded seriously. “I need someone… to handle the rest of the humany-wumany things that I otherwise can’t. Someone to come with me and reign me in when I start making mistakes. ”</p><p>“Doctor, I-“</p><p>“It’ll be just like old times.” The Doctor said. “Well, with a child in the mix.”</p><p>“B-But, I’ve got Clyde and Rani to look after,” Sarah Jane stammered. “You don’t always come back to Earth in the nick of time, what if something happens?”</p><p>“They can phone.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>Sarah Jane shook her head. “Answering a phone call doesn’t mean you’ll arrive on time! El told me about that time you met Churchill, a month after he called.”</p><p>“Cheeky little…” The Doctor crossed his arms. “Anyway, I can rig up a solution to that with Mister Smith.” The Doctor answered. “Please, Sarah Jane, you’re the only one I can trust with this… Don’t make me beg.”</p><p>The last time the Doctor asked Sarah Jane to come back aboard the TARDIS, it was… decades after being dropped off in Aberdeen of all places, and then not hearing hide nor hair of him since, the only exceptions being when she found the K-9 model he’d gifted her, and the incident when she got transported to the Death Zone on Gallifrey.</p><p>After all that time, she wanted nothing more than to go with the Doctor. But decades of feeling embittered about being left behind didn’t vanish overnight, no matter who the person was, or what had happened to them. Plus, at the time, the Doctor was traveling with Rose. We’ll not get into detail here, but Sarah Jane’s first impression of her wasn’t very good. Not that Sarah Jane particularly <em>helped</em> but if she had come aboard back then, it’d just be a recipe for conflict.</p><p>But now… Luke was off at Oxford and was more than smart enough to call Mister Smith if something happened. Clyde and Rani (Rani mainly) were smart enough to hold back and wait for Sarah Jane before getting involved in anything alien.</p><p>And… well, anyone would have trouble saying no to the Doctor, never mind the one that was so childlike and innocent on the outside.</p><p>“…I suppose you’ll need someone to let you know when you’re being an idiot.” She finally responded, the Doctor’s head shooting up, before a giant, joyous smile overtook him. “But,” She held up a finger, “You need to talk to that little girl first. Get this dad business straightened out.”</p><p>“On it!” The Doctor shot to his feet, running up the stairs to the attic like a jumping bean on caffeine.</p><p>Sarah Jane sighed. What was she getting herself into?</p><p>-----------</p><p>When the Doctor came into the attic, El, Clyde, and Rani were playing Mario Kart.</p><p>Clyde had chosen Bowser, Rani had picked Princess Peach, and El looked like she was controlling Toad.</p><p>“No, no, no, no, no!” Clyde yelled, as a blue shell came out of nowhere and completely obliterated him. “No!” He repeated, as El passed him. “How are you so good at this already!?”</p><p>“She’s a quick learner.” The Doctor chose to make his presence known, standing over the three. He looked down at El as she crossed the finish line. “Listen… can we talk for a second?”</p><p>El’s eyebrows knit together, and she tilted her head.</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, and the doors to the TARDIS opened, the Time Lord gesturing.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I want to start by saying that I’m not angry with you.” The Doctor began, El sitting on the stairs, the Doctor standing as he spoke. “Last night, when you went to bed… do you remember that?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor gulped. “Do you also remember… I came to say goodnight, and… well…” He awkwardly tugged his bow tie. “You called me dad.”</p><p>“…I did.” El recalled. “River was on the other side of the door. Said she and my dad would get me out… she meant you.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded so far.</p><p>El played with her hands. “Before that… you talked about Susan. Said there was a little girl you took care of and that made her your daughter. Which made you her dad.”</p><p>“Right…” The Doctor could see where this is going.</p><p>“So… I thought since I am a girl and you take care of me…” El swallowed. “Sorry. Should’ve asked.”</p><p>“El,” The Doctor crouched down to her level, taking her hands, “You don’t have anything to apologize for. But… you do have to answer a question.”</p><p>“I do?” El gulped.</p><p>The Doctor drew in a breath. “Do you want me to be your dad?”</p><p>“…do you want to be?” El asked in response.</p><p>“El,” The Doctor smiled. “It would make me more happier than you could ever know.”</p><p>El smiled herself. “Then, yes. Dad.” She paused for a moment, getting to her feet. Then, she threw her arms around the Time Lord. “Now, game.” She remembered, pulling back</p><p>The Doctor continued smiling, even as he watched El open the TARDIS doors, stepping out to return to her game with Rani and Clyde.</p><p>The Doctor was about to walk, before something briefly registered as being on his face.</p><p>In confusion, the Doctor shakily reached his hand up, and wiped away the culprit. His fingers had become wet with tears.</p><p>“Crying… because I’m happy…” The Doctor muttered to himself, before smiling. “How… humany-wumany.”</p><p>It wasn’t hard to see why, though. Since the Time War, the Doctor really hadn’t been a parent. Most of his children died at the hands of the Daleks, and those that survived… wiped out by his own hand, when he ended it. He never, never, ever expected to be one since then.</p><p>And yet… here he was.</p>
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<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Smith and... Smith</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I’ve talked to Luke, Clyde, and Rani,” Sarah Jane came up to the attic, “They don’t exactly want me to leave, but they understand why. They’ll call if something comes up.”</p><p>“And if they don’t,” The Doctor rolled out from under Mister Smith, “This lovely fella can give us a call himself.” He got to his feet. “How’s it working?”</p><p>“Please wait while I run a diagnostic.” Mister Smith replied, a block of text popping up on his screen as he ran through the Doctor’s modifications. “Complete. Space-Time Telegraph integration successful.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled proud of his handiwork. “There. Now, if anything alien comes along, Mister Smith has a direct line to the TARDIS, won’t even have to worry about the old girl routing the call. Right then!” The Doctor clapped his hands, turning to Sarah Jane. “Ready?”</p><p>She smiled. “I assume there are still plenty of clothes in the wardrobe?”</p><p>“And, possibly, a swimming pool!” The Doctor laughed in response. “Alright then, come along, Smith!”</p><p>He pushed into the TARDIS, pulling her behind, before taking off, the police box fading out of the attic.</p><p>Mister Smith sighed, and retreated back into the wall, going into standby mode.</p><p>----------</p><p>“So, where to first!?” The Doctor excitedly asked, bounding around the console madly.</p><p>El was about to open her mouth to speak, before her stomach growled. “Hungry.” She said.</p><p>The Doctor groaned impatiently. “Really, now of all times?”</p><p>El shrugged.</p><p>The Doctor rubbed his face. “Fine, let’s go.”</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor strode into the kitchen, El on his heels, and Sarah Jane following both of them.</p><p>El sat down in a chair at the table, waiting patiently, as the Doctor looked in the nearby fridge. The Doctor took out a box of fish fingers and eggos, sitting them on the counter, before he went to the cupboard, pulling out custard.</p><p>Sarah Jane frowned, as she went over to the refrigerator, and recoiled. “Doctor… how long has El been on board the TARDIS?”</p><p>“Five days.” The Time Lord answered. “Why?”</p><p>“And in that time, have the only things you two been eating been fish fingers and frozen waffles?”</p><p>“No!” The Doctor quickly denied. “There was some ice cream too.”</p><p>Sarah Jane sighed, shaking her head. “Doctor, human children can’t get by only eating one type of food. Especially one that’s only carbs. You need to get some proper food in.”</p><p>“No!” The Doctor replied. “Fish fingers is protein, custard is… dairy, and the waffles are wheat!”</p><p>Sarah Jane turned to the Doctor, fiery look in her eyes. “Grocery store. <em>Now</em>.”</p><p>The Doctor gulped. Shopping with Sarah Jane was a mistake his fourth face made once.</p><p>Only once.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor’s face twisted unpleasantly as Sarah Jane took the lead into the market, grabbing a cart. Her eyes flickered over to him, and she sighed. “Okay, Doctor, I have something very important for you.”</p><p>The Doctor instantly straightened out, “Really?”</p><p>“Yes.” She said. “I need you,” She ripped the list in half, “To go and get everything on this piece of paper.”</p><p>The Doctor read the list, and he saluted, smacking himself in the process. “Yes, ma’am!” He turned to the child by his side. “Come along, El!” He pulled a cart away from the rest, grabbed El, putting her in the basket, before running off into the store.</p><p>Sarah Jane sighed. The Doctor may have had a <em>literal </em>child now, but he was, by far, the more immature out of the two of them.</p><p>Well… there was no point in being grown-up if you couldn’t be childish sometimes.</p><p>----------</p><p>Minutes passed, as the Doctor and El moved from aisle to aisle. They’d completed the half of Sarah Jane’s list early on, but the Doctor wasn’t done, having to remove El from the basket to make room for the food.</p><p>Dozens of boxes of fish fingers sat on top of the few items Sarah Jane directed them to get, the Doctor also proceeding to get anything and everything that caught his eye.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor looked over to the fruit stands surrounded by other shoppers. He frowned. He probably wouldn’t be able to get the cart in there. “Stay with our stuff.” He directed El, running off to get a bunch of bananas.</p><p>El nodded, standing vigilantly over the cart. She stood, as the Doctor impatiently hopped up and down, trying to get through the crowd. She held an Eggo from the TARDIS in her hand, and moving it up to her mouth to take a bite…</p><p>She jumped, as it was suddenly yanked out of her hand.</p><p>El turned furiously to the culprit, and stopped, freezing.</p><p>There, standing tall over her was a girl. Maybe about 15 or 16, wearing blue and yellow checkered shirt, yellow suspenders, and blue sweatpants. But, most importantly…</p><p>She had El’s own face. El wasn’t stupid, she’d seen her reflection enough times to know what her own face looked like. Only, the her standing in front of El now looked… healthy. Far from malnourished, with a slight tan that could’ve only been earned by spending time out in the sunlight on a regular basis, and hair down to her shoulders, a nice, healthy chestnut color.</p><p>“Mmm…” She let out a happy sigh, taking a bite out of the waffle. “Haven’t had one of these in a while.”</p><p>El tilted her head, as the… other, older her spoke with a British accent not unlike the Doctor.</p><p>Older-El smiled, as she finished the waffle. “Actual waffles are amazing, but that? That hit the spot.”</p><p>El scowled. “Mean.”</p><p>“It’s not mean if it’s to myself.” The older her defended.</p><p>El’s eyebrows furrowed. “Prove it.”</p><p>Older-El shrugged. “Okay.” She reached into her pocket, pulling out something on a chain.</p><p>El gasped, as she noticed the TARDIS key.</p><p>“See?” Older-El smiled knowingly, putting it away. “Snap.” Her eyes glanced over to the Doctor, standing near the fruit. “Oh, I remember this. This is when he brought back that cart full of junk and Aunt Sarah…” She abruptly stopped. “Well, spoilers.”</p><p>“Kid!” A man with slightly disheveled hair, wearing a WWII coat, hollered from across the store. “We’ve gotta go!”</p><p>“Hold on a second!” Older-El replied, before turning back to her younger self. “Sorry about him. We’re not technically supposed to be here. There’s some trouble…”</p><p>“Trouble?” El repeated, concerned.</p><p>The older version of herself waved it away. “You’ll find out eventually.” She glanced back over at the Doctor. “This is… the day after you started calling him dad, right?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>The older her smiled. “That’s what I thought. Glad I was right.” She turned back to her younger self, “So, early days then, well before the Pandorica. Excellent.” She reached into her pocket again for a different object.</p><p>“Hurry up!” The man hollered again.</p><p>She turned to him. “In a minute, Uncle Jack!” She yelled, before turning back to herself. “Right, better wrap this up. Take this.” She instructed, reaching into her pocket. She pulled out a small box, just large enough to hold two or three pencils. She gently took her younger self’s hand, placing the box in it.</p><p>“What is it?” El asked, looking at it.</p><p>“It’s important.” The older her answered. “See, there’s this door out there that can’t be opened in any way… Any way, except for the thing in that box.” She pointed. “Hold onto it.”</p><p>“Why?” El inquired.</p><p>“Trust me.” She replied. “But, whatever you do… <em>don’t </em>open it until you get back to the TARDIS. When do you, keep that on you at all times, and under no circumstances, can you let the Doctor know you have that. Not until its time.”</p><p>“Time for what?” El asked.</p><p>“You’ll know it when it happens.” Older-El answered.</p><p>El looked to the box in her hand, frowning. “But… why?”</p><p>The older her smiled. “You’re going to need it very, very soon… When the Pandorica Opens.”</p><p>“Ellie!” Jack shouted. “We have to go, now!”</p><p>Older-El jumped in surprise, as something in her pocket beeped. She pulled out a small, polished black rectangle Her eyes widened as she looked at the readouts.</p><p>“Now do you see why I’m so worried!?” Jack bellowed. “If you and your boyfriend hadn’t been so busy sucking face, we might have had a bit more time to make random stop-offs, but we don’t! Finish that up!”</p><p>“Right!” Older-El put the device away, looking back to her younger self. “Hold onto that, keep it with you at all times. And, I’ll see you around, kid.” She said, before running off to join the man.</p><p>“Who was that?” The Doctor asked, suddenly popping up behind El.</p><p>The girl looked to the retreating form of her future self, and smiled</p><p>“Friend.” She answered simply.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, eyebrows furrowing, before he looked to his watch. “Right, let’s go.”</p><p>“Dad?” El looked to him.</p><p>“Hmm?” The Doctor turned.</p><p>“What are ‘proper’ waffles?” El inquired.</p><p>The Doctor got a scheming look on his face. “…I wonder what the weight capacity of this trolley is.”</p><p>----------</p><p>“No.” Sarah Jane stood at the back of the line; her arms crossed.</p><p>“Come on…” The Doctor whined, petulantly stamping his feet.</p><p>“You do not,” She pointed to the bags precariously stacked far above the cart. “Need that much pancake batter!”</p><p>“Need? No.” El answered. “Want? Yes.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the Doctor. “What in the world have you been teaching this little girl? …And how were you even able to stack it like that?”</p><p>“Very, very carefully.” The Doctor answered. “Now, shall we check out? We seem to be holding the line up.”</p><p>“Put it back.” Sarah Jane serenely commanded.</p><p>“But Sarah…” The Doctor whined again.</p><p>“Doctor.” She said, putting on her best mom glare.</p><p>The Time Lord let out a defeated sigh. “Come on, El. Guess we’ll have to make our waffle fort some <em>other </em>day.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0029"><h2>29. The Festival of Light</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“There.” Sarah Jane satisfactorily stocked the last box in the cupboard. “Now, you have <em>actual </em>food to eat.”</p><p>“Eggos… bad?” El worriedly questioned.</p><p>“Of course not.” Sarah Jane answered. “But you have to take everything in moderation. You can’t eat the same thing for every meal every day.”</p><p>“Don’t listen to her, El.” The Doctor told her, eating fish fingers with custard, nonetheless. “She just doesn’t understand good taste.”</p><p>“You want to speak to me about good taste?” Sarah Jane turned to him. “The man who wore… <em>That Coat?”</em></p><p>The Doctor paled. “Th-That’s not fair! How did you know about that!? You didn’t meet me in that face!”</p><p>“UNIT has pictures of all your faces.” Sarah Jane replied.</p><p>“Don’t get it.” El looked between the two of them.</p><p>“And hopefully, you never will.” Sarah Jane stated. “It really was a horrendous piece of fashion… Though, whether or not it’s more horrendous than the bow tie, I still haven’t figured out.”</p><p>“Ha ha.” The Doctor humorlessly laughed.</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane changed the subject, making herself something to eat, “What is on the itinerary now that we’ve gotten the shopping done?”</p><p>The Doctor perked up. “I thought you’d never ask! I hoped you packed your swimming gear…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Welcome,” The Doctor began, placing an umbrella down into the sand, “To Lithone.” A clear, purple sky loomed overhead, the distant alien sun shining brightly.</p><p>El looked around in wonder, at all the water extending out into the distance, and all the people on the beach. “What is this place?”</p><p>“It’s a resort planet.” The Doctor answered. “The whole planet’s ninety-eight percent water, with a few small islands. Number one on the Discerning Galactic Traveler’s Destination Guide.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked around, a sun hat placed securely on her head, and frowned. “What are all these tents about?” She asked, referring to the stalls and cloth constructs dotted about the large beach they’d found themselves on, extending far into the distance.</p><p>“Oh, that?” The Doctor smiled. “Well, Lithone’s not really famous for it’s beaches. You can go to any old Class M planet to get a beach. No, Lithone’s the number one destination in Andromeda for the Festival of Lights.”</p><p>El tilted her head curiously. “What’s that?”</p><p>“The oceans of this world have tiny little organisms called plankton living in them.” The Doctor explained to her. “More than a thousand per drop of water.”</p><p>“Tiny… bugs?” El repeated, looking at the water warily.</p><p>“Sort of.” Sarah Jane picked up. “But plankton are completely harmless.”</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor pointed, “There are plankton on Earth, too, but the plankton here are special. Every hundred years, they reproduce, and when they do, they start to glow.”</p><p>“They’re bioluminescent?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“Take some of the magic out of it, but yes…” The Doctor muttered. “Anyway, every hundred years, people from all across the galaxy come here to take part in the festival. It’s such a big event, the natives spend whole decades preparing for the next go round, and it’s so ingrained into their culture that even ones born on worlds lightyears away take pilgrimages here to witness it.”</p><p>El blinked, looking at the, as of the moment, entirely normal water. “Can we see it?”</p><p>“Of course we can.” The Doctor smiled back in response. “I wouldn’t tell you all about it and then give you a big fat no. And it’s fortunate this place is a beach world.” The Doctor continued. “I know just the activity to fill the time until it starts properly.”</p><p>El tilted her head.</p><p>“You want to learn how to swim?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Okay, so.” The Doctor began, as El floated, inflatables secured tightly around her biceps. “Only thing you need to worry about right now is the basic motions.” He said, holding onto her carefully. The two floated a little way from dry land, the Doctor able to touch the seafloor with his feet, while El floated, and Sarah Jane was off to the side reading.</p><p>“Okay…” El slowly nodded.</p><p>“Now, I’m going to let you go, and swim just over there.” He pointed. “Just watch me, then try to mimic me.”</p><p>“…alright.” El shook, watching as the Doctor crossed the water, and turned around.</p><p>“See?” The Time Lord threw his hands out. “Easy peasy, just paddle.”</p><p>“Paddle…” El repeated, as she began to cross the water to him.</p><p>El’s movements were jittery, unsteadied by the fact that, aside from her baths on the TARDIS, that was really the first time she spent in water without it being in a sensory deprivation tank.</p><p>But, her eyes locked on the Doctor, and she saw his face. In that moment, she felt determined to do it. Not out of obligation, or because she was being threatened with punishment for it, but because of a need to make him proud.</p><p>El crossed the water, fire in her eyes, and she made contact with the Doctor.</p><p>“Hey, hey!” The Doctor beamed proudly, grabbing onto her. “You did it! First time in the water, and you took to it like a pro!”</p><p>El grinned widely in response.</p><p>“How about it?” The Doctor asked. “Want to go at it another time?”</p><p>El nodded quickly, determined to see the Doctor proud again.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Sarah Jane?” El asked on her twelfth lap.</p><p>The woman looked up from her book, smiling kindly. “Yes, El?”</p><p>“Why don’t you come in the water?” El asked.</p><p>Sarah Jane’s smile didn’t drop, but her eyes did become tinged with regret and fear. “I don’t quite like the ocean, I’m afraid.”</p><p>“Oh.” El blinked. “What happened?”</p><p>“Another story for another time.” Sarah Jane replied kindly.</p><p>“Oh!” The Doctor suddenly shouted in surprise, looking at his watch, and the other groups of people getting out of the water. “Out, out!”</p><p>“What?” El looked to the Doctor, concerned.</p><p>“It’s about to start.” The Doctor answered, helping the girl find her land legs. “Come on.” He gently guided her over to the beach towels they had set up and sat down.</p><p>El looked around curiously, as the sky began to quickly dim.</p><p>“Watch the water.” The Doctor instructed, as Sarah Jane put her book away to witness the event as well.</p><p>El gasped, as the water suddenly began to glow. Blue, yellow, orange, red, green, and purple light began to replace the sun, lighting up the entire space like it was in the middle of the day.</p><p>“Pretty…” El breathed, as the alien gathers came out of their tents. Some hung back, but others approached the water, entering it just slightly as though it were a religious experience for them.</p><p>There, the crew of the TARDIS sat, watching in rapt awe as the lights swirled in the water, colors cascading off each other like a nebula had been shrunk down and put in the seawater.</p><p>“…I missed this.” Sarah Jane spoke up, as the natives linked arms, and began to chant in reverence.</p><p>The Doctor turned to her, smiling. “Sounds like you think you made the right choice, coming along.”</p><p>“I did.” Sarah Jane turned back to look at the water.</p><p>The three of them sat there for the rest of the night, watching serenely.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The wooden door of the TARDIS creaked shut gently, the Doctor carrying El’s sleeping form.</p><p>He gently carried her through the corridors of the immense craft, towards her room, the doors sliding open of their own accord. He laid her down on the bed, and turned to exit, but before he did, he placed something down on the nightstand.</p><p>A little photo, one that Sarah Jane had captured while the other two remained unaware of it. It wasn’t anything too much, but it did show a smiling El, and a beaming Doctor, as he held her after she crossed the distance to him for that first time. It was the first photo taken of the girl that wasn’t a mugshot. Hopefully, not the last either.</p><p>The Time Lord smiled, gently kissing the girl goodnight on the forehead, before exiting the room.</p><p>-------</p><p>The next morning, El yawned as the lights of the TARDIS hit her eyes, and she looked around. She spotted the photo on her nightstand and tilted her head curiously.</p><p>Seeing her own face looking so… <em>happy, </em>the girl smiled. She couldn’t remember a time like that from before the lab.</p><p>But… She supposed that meant she was well on her way to becoming the person she met in the store. Speaking of whom…</p><p>Now certain that the Doctor wouldn’t come barging in wildly, El went over to her dresser, pulling open the bottom drawer. Pushing some clothes aside, she found the box the older her had given herself, and walked back over to her bed, sitting down.</p><p>Gold, complex circular writings were inscribed on the top. The language of the Doctor’s people. El tilted her head, unable to understand it if it had been a warning or a label of the box’s contents.</p><p>El placed her thumb at the small seam near the top, and pushed it, the top sliding off effortlessly.</p><p>El gasped at the object waiting patiently for her, cushioned on red velvet, gleaming as the light struck it.</p><p>The girl pulled it out, and looked it over almost reverently.</p><p>A sonic screwdriver, just like the one that the Doctor had possessed when he first crash landed, only it was different. A sort of gold color, with a magenta emitter.</p><p>El’s eyebrows furrowed together as she pressed down the button.</p><p>Nothing happened.</p><p>Still, this was important…</p><p>Why would her future self need to leave her a sonic screwdriver?</p>
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<a name="section0030"><h2>30. Venice, 1580</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“So, that was a nice, quiet trip.” The Doctor commented with a smile, fiddling with the controls of the TARDIS. “What do you say we try for another one, eh?”</p><p>“Quiet?” Sarah Jane repeated, looking the Doctor up and down.</p><p>The Doctor glanced back at her. “What?”</p><p>“Sorry, it’s just-“ The woman laughed, “In all the faces I’ve known you, ‘quiet’ never described any of them.”</p><p>“Hey,” The Doctor snapped his fingers, pointing. “I can do quiet, I’m great at quiet.”</p><p>“No.” El spoke up, sitting on the seat nearby.</p><p>The Doctor looked at the girl. “What?”</p><p>“Not quiet.” El said. “Lots of things. Not quiet.”</p><p>The Doctor recoiled, affronted, as Sarah Jane and El laughed. “I can’t believe this! My best friend and my little girl ganging up on me! Who wants to join in next, you, old girl?” He sarcastically directed to the TARDIS and shook his head. “And I may not be calm, but I can do quiet! In fact, I know one of the greatest places in the universe, that’s bustling and full of life, and beautiful and peaceful at the same time!”</p><p>“Okay.” Sarah Jane granted. “Prove it.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled smugly. “Oh, I will.”</p><p>----------</p><p>“Venice!” The Doctor shouted enthusiastically, throwing his arms out as they all stepped out of the TARDIS. “Venezia!”</p><p>El smiled, eyes wide to take everything in as she looked around at the market stalls, people going about their day, the stone architecture that looked like it had long since weathered the test of time, and the canals running straight through the city.</p><p>“La Serenissima!” The Doctor smiled, looking around.</p><p>“Italy.” Sarah Jane remarked, looking around. “No evil energy helixes terrorizing the country this time, I hope?”</p><p>El tilted her head.</p><p>“Long story.” The Doctor told the girl. “Fought an energy entity that stowed away on board the TARDIS in this country, and-“ He pointed to Sarah Jane. “That was almost a hundred years ago! But never mind that, look, look, look!” He gestured around. “It’s such a beautiful city! Oh, I love Venice. Me and a lot of others. Byron, Napoleon, Casanova-“ The Doctor stopped, checking his watch quickly and anxiously. He let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, he’s not born for another 145 years… That’s a tremendous relief.”</p><p>El raised an eyebrow. “Casanova?”</p><p>“I owe him a hen.” He answered, moving on his way through the city.</p><p>“A hen?” Sarah Jane repeated. “Why do you owe him a chicken?”</p><p>“I said hen.” The Doctor replied. “I didn’t say chicken.”</p><p>The Doctor tried to move through an arched doorway, deeper into the city.</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!” A man’s hand shot out, cutting off the Doctor. “Where do you think you’re going? Papers, please.”</p><p>The Doctor merely smiled, offering the man the psychic paper. “All to your satisfaction, I should hope.”</p><p>The inspector began to look over it, before he quickly gasped, looking to the others. “I-I’m so sorry, your holiness.” He apologized, bowing to the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord blinked, before gesturing for the other man to raise up. “Don’t worry about it, you were just doing your job.” The Doctor looked between the man and the others, leaning in. “Sorry, what exactly is your job?”</p><p>“Checking for aliens,” The inspector answered, as Sarah Jane fought back laughter. “Visitors from foreign lands what might bring the plague with them.”</p><p>Sarah Jane quickly sobered. “Plague?” She turned to the Doctor furiously. “Your idea of a quiet trip is to bring a girl with a quite-probably compromised immune system to a time where there’s a plague in full swing!?” She hissed.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Viscountess.” The inspector bowed to the woman. “No, we’re under quarantine here. No-one comes in, no-one goes out, and all because of the grace and wisdom of our patroness, Signora Rosanna Calvierri.” He gestured down to the book he carried, a family crest or seal stamped into the leather of the cover.</p><p>Sarah Jane leaned towards the Doctor, whispering. “I don’t recognize that name.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “So?”</p><p>“So, if Venice was quarantined by a woman in a fairly high-up position, why don’t I?” Sarah Jane rhetorically asked. “Something’s wrong here.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled proudly, pointing at her. “I knew there was a reason I brought you along.” He turned to the man. “Yeah, see, I heard the plague died out ages ago?”</p><p>“Not out there!” The inspector pointed to nowhere in the distance. “Signora Calvierri has seen it with her own two eyes! Bodies piled high in the streets, she said!”</p><p>“Did she now?” The Doctor lowly asked, before suddenly smiling. “Well, thank you for your time.” He turned to the others, taking El’s hand. “Come along.” He directed, heading deeper into Venice.</p><p>-----------</p><p>As they walked down the streets next to the canals, a hullaballoo began to be generated, a crowd gathering and staring awestruck at something across the way.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, running over and leaning on a railing, trying to get a look.</p><p>A line of girls, most of them only just out of their late teens, were being led by a regal woman dressed in black. The girls following her were all wearing veils, dressed in white in a way that, for the people of the time, was obviously meant to be provocative in some manner.</p><p>A dark-skinned man suddenly cut in trying to get to one of the girls. “Isabella!” He shouted, lifting the veil on each one of the women, trying to find the correct one.</p><p>“What’s he doing?” El asked, sensing anxiety radiating from him. He was looking for the girl, but not to hurt her. His thoughts seemed to focus on… rescue.</p><p>The situation didn’t look that bad. So… why would this ‘Isabella’ need to be rescued?</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor replied, looking on as the man lifted the veil of the one he was searching for, and she recoiled in the sunlight.</p><p>One of the girls pushed the man to the ground, hissing.</p><p>The Doctor’s head shot up. That was <em>not </em>normal human vocal modulation.</p><p>El tilted her head, watching as another man stood over the first, taunting, before going off. Two guards came to drag the first away, and El frowned.</p><p>“What was-?” She turned to the Doctor, stopping, and she sighed. “Hate it when he does that.”</p><p>Sarah Jane merely nodded in agreement.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor kept at a brisk pace through the streets, quickly getting to the other side of the canal. Spotting the man from before walking through an archway, the Doctor followed.</p><p>“Who were those girls?” The Time Lord probed without preamble, hopping on a small stair behind the man.</p><p>The man turned around, looking the Doctor up and down. “I thought everyone knew about the Calvierri School.”</p><p>The Doctor crossed his arms, shrugging. “It’s my first day here. It’s okay,” He hopped down, “Parents do all sorts of things to get their children into schools. Should probably get El into one now that I’m thinking about it. Then again, experience is the best teacher, and she is traveling with me, so… Sorry, rambling, back on topic. School?” The Doctor looked back to him. “Those school uniforms looked a bit… risqué, but not like anything else untoward was happening, so… why are you trying to get her out?”</p><p>“Something happens in there.” The Italian man answered. “Something magical, something <em>evil.</em>” He gulped. “My own daughter didn’t recognize me… and the girl who pushed me away, her face… like an animal.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, throwing an arm around the man’s shoulders. “I think it’s time that I met this… Signora Calvierri.”</p><p>------------</p><p>El and Sarah Jane walked down the streets of Venice, past a woman who was sweeping up straw in an alley.</p><p>“’Don’t wander off,’ he says to us.” Sarah Jane grumbled. “And what’s the first thing he does when he spots something mildly interesting? Wander off.”</p><p>An agonized scream echoed through the place, and the two froze.</p><p>“Every time!” Sarah Jane turned on her heel, running off towards the source.</p><p>Sprinting around a corner, the two stopped upon seeing a man hunched over a woman, biting into her neck.</p><p>He quickly registered their presence, and stood up, throwing a veil up to cover his face, as he walked back through the streets.</p><p>El focused on the man, as Sarah Jane went to look over the woman. Something about the man was <em>wrong, </em>like her mind didn’t want to register his existence, even though he was standing there.</p><p>Sarah Jane let out a sigh, as she flipped up the cover on the watch-like device on her wrist. “She’ll be fine. Only a minor amount of blood loss. Who-“ She turned, catching El sprinting off after the man. “El!” She shot to her feet, running after the girl.</p><p>Following El through the winding paths, Sarah Jane stopped, as El stood at a doorway, looking out onto the ocean.</p><p>“El, what you were thinking?” Sarah Jane reprimanded.</p><p>“But… he was just…” El looked out in confusion. Feeling out with her mind, she still registered his presence, but there was nothing there to see. Even the water looked mostly undisturbed.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Isabella!” The man, who the Doctor learned was named Guido, tried to push his way through the front gates of the school.</p><p>As the guards tried to deal with him, the Doctor sneakily strode past, around the side closest to the canal. The Doctor soniced the gate open quietly, proceeding inside.</p><p>The Doctor climbed down the spiraling stairs, into a basement level of the school.</p><p>The Time Lord’s eyes locked on a mirror, and he smiled, walking over to it. “Well… hello, handsome.” It was the first look he’d gotten at this new face since regenerating into it, and he was all alone, so one could forgive him for being a bit self-indulgent.</p><p>….God, he really did look like a teenager trying to look older than he was.</p><p>“Who are you?” Five voices inquired in unison, and the Doctor jumped, turning around.</p><p>The students were down here with him. The Doctor’s eyes ran over each one, and back to the mirror in confusion.</p><p>Even though the five stood there, at an angle that should’ve clearly allowed the mirror to reflect them, there was no such reflection in the polished surface.</p><p>“B-“ The Doctor kept gesturing back and forth between the mirror and the girls. “How are you doing that?” He finally asked, excited more than he had ever been. He hadn’t met people with no reflection before. “I am loving it! You’re like Houdini only you’re five slightly scary girls, and he was shorter, will be shorter.” He clapped his hands. “Sorry, rambling.”</p><p>“I’ll ask you again Signor.” They all spoke as one, slightly tilting their heads. “Who are you?”</p><p>“Why don’t you check,” He flashed his wallet. “This out.”</p><p>The girls tilted heads angled further, and the Doctor looked at the wallet. He groaned, looking at the slightly mischievous smile of the First Doctor’s face.</p><p>“My library card. Of course, I gave the psychic to Sarah Jane.” He shook his head, abruptly stopping as he considered something. “Pale, creepy girls who don’t like sunlight, and can’t be seen in… aha! Am I thinking what I think I’m thinking?” The Doctor giddily asked. “But the city. Why shut down the city? Unless-“</p><p>“Leave now, Signor.” The girls commanded. “Or we shall call for the steward… if you are lucky.”</p><p>“Oho.” The Doctor giggled. He gulped, mirth vanishing as the girl’s began to hiss, teeth turning into long fangs. He tugged on his jacket, walking effortlessly towards the exit as they began to advance. “Tell me the whole plan!” He suddenly commanded, whipping around.</p><p>The girls all hissed at him.</p><p>“One of these days that’s going to work.” The Doctor mumbled to himself, running up the stairs.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Dad!” El ran over to the Doctor. “Where’d you go!?”</p><p>“Ah, sorry!” He looked between her and Sarah Jane. “Vampires! I just met some Vampires!”</p><p>“Vampire?” El repeated.</p><p>“Yes, Vampires!” The Doctor hopped up and down with her. “Bloodsucking monsters with no reflection and a really bad temper and there’s some here in this school!”</p><p>“But…” Sarah Jane searched. “<em>Vampires!?”</em></p><p>The Doctor looked the woman up and down. “You’ve met the Loch Ness Monster!”</p><p>Sarah Jane held up a finger but conceded his point. “Well, if the girls in there are being… Vampirized somehow, we need to find a way inside.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled excitedly. “Come and meet my new friend.”</p><p>----------</p><p>Guido was reluctant at first, but after being made aware of the fact that the trio intended on infiltrating the school and putting a stop to whatever was going on inside, he gladly began to lend his assistance.</p><p>They leaned over a map of Venice, trying to figure out a way into the school without being seen by the Vampires.</p><p>“As you saw, there’s no clear way in.” Guido pointed, shaking his head. “The House of Calvierri is like a fortress. But,” He amended, “There’s a tunnel underneath it,” He ran his finger along a section of the map. “With a ladder and a shaft that leads up to the house. I tried to get in once myself, but I hit a trapdoor.”</p><p>“We can pry open that trapdoor, easy.” The Doctor glanced to El.</p><p>“Doctor,” Sarah Jane crossed her arms, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”</p><p>“Well, what’s the alternative?” The Doctor looked between them. “They won’t except her because she’s too young, and they won’t except you because you’re too…”</p><p>Sarah Jane’s eyes narrowed.</p><p>“I was going to say educated!” The Doctor quickly waved his hands. “They wouldn’t take you in because they’d already assume you’d been to school.”</p><p>“Because I’m old?” Sarah Jane questioned.</p><p>“Yes! No!” The Doctor switched up. “You’re not old! You’re young! …but distinguished enough to be my sister!”</p><p>Guido looked between them. “Actually, I thought you,” He pointed to Sarah Jane, “Were his mother.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the Doctor.</p><p>“…older sister?” The Time Lord amended.</p><p>“Oh, aunt!” El recognized, speaking up.</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor pointed. “Your aunt Sarah.” He quickly looked over to the barrels in the corner, sniffing at them, before recoiling. “Eugh, gunpowder.”</p><p>Sarah Jane sighed, shaking her head. “Doctor, I do have one question. What would Vampires want with Venice?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “I don’t know… if they <em>are </em>Vampires.”</p><p>Sarah Jane uncrossed her arms, standing straight. “What are they, if they <em>aren’t</em>?”</p><p>The Doctor remained silent for a moment. Vampire really wasn’t a species name, more like a catch-all term, like how there were a hundred different breeds of dog. Lots of planets all over the universe bred Vampiristic organisms. But there was one group that started it all, one group responsible for inspiring every Vampire myth in the cosmos, and for being the progenitors of every Vampire-like organism in existence.</p><p>The Doctor leaned forward clasping his hands. “A long long time ago, the Time Lords were a young race like any other. Expanding so quickly into the stars to the point of hubris, and out there we found something. Or rather… something found us.”</p><p>El tilted her head curiously. “What was it?”</p><p>“The Yssgaroth.” The Doctor answered. “The Great Vampires. They used to consume whole worlds, leaving only dead husks. But they’re feared by everyone and everything in the universe, and for good reason. With the possible exception of the Daleks, they are the most feared, hated, <em>reviled </em>beings in all the cosmos.”</p><p>“What’s so bad that it would willingly disguise itself as that?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“That…” The Doctor licked his lips. “Is the question.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“We’re here.” Guido quietly proclaimed, as he punted the boat into a small inlet, night long having fallen.</p><p>Team TARDIS disembarked, watching as Guido moved the boat back the way they came.</p><p>The old rusty metal gate creaked as the Doctor pushed it open, taking the lead with a torch.</p><p>“Okay, I’ll take the lead.” The Doctor declared, walking up the steps, as Sarah Jane and El followed. “Anything happens to me, go back to the TARDIS, and activate Emergency Program One. It’ll solve the problem.”</p><p>“Yeah.” Sarah Jane replied, as they pushed through the door at the top of the stairs, proceeding down the tunnel. “Fat chance of that happening.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Why do you say that?”</p><p>“I’m not stupid.” Sarah Jane retorted. “I know exactly what that program does.”</p><p>El furrowed her eyebrows. “What does it do?”</p><p>“Sends us home.” Sarah Jane answered before the Doctor could. “And leaves him in whatever mess he made for himself.”</p><p>“Nope.” El instantly proclaimed. “Not doing that.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, turning to her. “Welp, I’m your dad now, so what I say goes.” He stood, trying to look authoritative… before a gust of wind blew out the torch. “Look, can we just go and see the Vampires, please?” He whispered.</p><p>------------</p><p>Deep within the Calvierri House, there was a circular trapdoor made of heavy steel covering the ladder down into the tunnels. The metal bar keeping it closed slid away by itself, and the two pieces of metal swung open, the Doctor popping his head out like a gopher.</p><p>“Okay, we’re clear.” The Doctor climbed out first, helping El out, and then Sarah Jane. “Great going.” The Doctor complimented, and El beamed. He looked around, narrowing his eyes. “Can’t see a thing…” He reached into his pocket, pulling out a fluorescent light attached to a handle.</p><p>El blinked, looking into the Doctor’s pockets. “What else do you have in there?”</p><p>The Doctor reached back in, pulling out a yo-yo, handing it to the girl. She frowned, occupying herself with it, as he went over to a chest set against the wall. Opening the chest, the Time Lord recoiled as he caught sight of the rotten, desiccated corpses lying inside.</p><p>“Doctor,” Sarah Jane began, sounding like she was trying to hold back the urge to wretch, “What happened to them?”</p><p>“They’ve had all the moisture, every last drop of water, sucked out of them…” The Doctor answered, touching one. The skin felt leathery, the bones like they would give at any moment. He looked to the skull, and frowned, seeing similar fangs to the one the girls he encountered had possessed.</p><p>“But…” El approached, tilting her head. “You said Vampires suck blood to make more of themselves. Why did these people die?”</p><p>The Doctor looked back to her, tongue poking out of his mouth. “Maybe not everyone can survive the process.”</p><p>“Who are you?” A half-dozen voices asked at once. Six of the girls came walking slowly out of the alcoves, fangs barred.</p><p>The Doctor jumped, pulling El and Sarah Jane close to him as he looked around.</p><p>El gasped, shaking. “F-Fish!” She pointed at the girls.</p><p>“What?” The Doctor looked down at her, then back to the approaching Vampires. “Nevermind, run!” He ordered, waving around the light, causing the Vampire girls to recoil, hissing as it burned at them.</p><p>The three burst through one of the doors, running down a hall. The Doctor came to a sliding stop, in front of a woman and two men.</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor blinked. “Rosanna Calvierri, I presume.”</p><p>The door behind them clanged as the girls came marching in.</p><p>Rosanna tilted her head sarcastically. “Did you not think we had prepared for intruders?”</p><p>“Ah, well…” The Doctor turned around, waving the light.</p><p>“This way!” A voice shouted.</p><p>The Doctor whipped around to see Guido’s daughter, Isabella, motioning for them to follow. Deciding on whether or not to follow the one person who<em> might </em>kill them, as opposed to stay with the nine who would <em>definitely </em>kill them, the Doctor chose the former.</p><p>“Run!” The Time Lord ordered, pushing Sarah Jane and El in that direction.</p><p>“Seal the house.” Rosanna ordered, as Isabella guided them out.</p><p>On the way, they passed through a green, glowing room, what looked like an injection chair of some sort standing in the center. He would’ve stopped to take a look, but Isabella kept moving, so he kept pushing El and Sarah Jane ahead of them.</p><p>“El, you said fish.” Sarah Jane recalled, as they all sprinted down the stairs. “Why did you say fish?”</p><p>“Not people, fish!” El elaborated. “Big, walking fish… people… <em>things!</em>”</p><p>“Aliens!” The Doctor laughed, as they reached the bottom. “The old ‘aliens pose as a mythical creature’ plot. Classic! Run, run, run!” He ordered, ushering El and Sarah Jane to the front as they ran down a series of tunnels under the house. “That must be what the chair I saw was for!” He turned around, waving the light to delay their pursuers, before keeping up. “They can’t convert humans without technological assistance. And they did it without having anything other that a bit of wood and tubing!”</p><p>“Stop being impressed!” Sarah Jane ordered, as they came to the door at the end.</p><p>A bell chimed as they opened the door, the morning light bombarding the city. Guido stood at the end, watching, as Isabella ushered the others out.</p><p>“Get out!” She ordered. “Quickly, quickly!” She moved to follow, but froze up, gasping in pain as the sunlight hit her. That was all the delay the others behind her needed to grab her, pulling her back inside.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor hollered, as the door slammed shut. He went to go bang against it, spasming as the door suddenly became electrified. The Doctor fell back, narrowly catching himself on the rails, as Sarah Jane and El went to help him.</p><p>“D…” El shook, looking at the Doctor as Sarah Jane scanned him. “Dead?”</p><p>“No.” She let out a relieved sigh. “Just sleeping.”</p><p>El slowly nodded, and turned around, looking at Guido. They’d managed to get inside, and get <em>some </em>idea of what was going on… but the reason why they went there in the first place, to rescue Isabella…</p><p>They’d failed.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0031"><h2>31. The Vampires of Venice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor sat in a throne in the Calvierri house, lounging. Shortly after waking up, he left Sarah Jane, El, and Guido while he went to the house. The place was empty, the inhabitants off throwing one of their own into the proverbial meat grinder.</p><p>The Doctor sat patiently, waiting, fiddling with the arms of the chair. Before long, Rosanna turned the corner, stopping.</p><p>The Doctor whistled loudly, drawing her attention onto him. “Long way from Saturnyne, aren’t you? Sister of the Water.” He named, looking up from the arms of the chair to her.</p><p>The moment El said fish people, the Doctor put that image together with the long fang-like teeth and came up with the answer.</p><p>The woman tilted her head. “Who are you, sir, with such knowledge of my homeland?”</p><p>“I’ll make you a deal.” The Doctor threw one leg over the other. “An answer for an answer.” The woman smiled, beginning to walk. “You’re using a perception filter. Manipulates the brainwaves of the person looking at you. But seeing one of you for the first time in a mirror, no reflection. The brain doesn’t know what to fill the gap with, so it leaves it blank. But, what’re the fangs about?”</p><p>Rosanna laughed quietly. “Self-preservation overrides the mirage. The subconscious recognizes the threat and alerts the conscious.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Where’s Isabella?”</p><p>“Ah, my turn.” Rosanna replied, the Doctor granting her that. “Where are you from?”</p><p>The Doctor remained silent and still for a few seconds. “Gallifrey.”</p><p>Rosanna looked the Doctor up and down, like an art connoisseur. “You should be in a museum… or in a mausoleum.”</p><p>The Doctor threw his hands out theatrically, before dropping them. “Why are you here?”</p><p>Rosanna looked down mournfully. “We ran from the Silence. Why are you here?”</p><p>“Taking my daughter to a nice quiet place.” The Doctor tilted his head. “The Silence?”</p><p>Rosanna swallowed. “There were cracks. Some were tiny, others as big as the sky. Through some we saw worlds and people, others… nothing but silence, the end of all things. We fled to an ocean like ours, and the crack snapped shut behind us and Saturnyne was lost.”</p><p>The Doctor’s emerald green eyes searched the woman. “So, Earth is to become Saturnyne mark two?”</p><p>Rosanna looked up, hopefully. “And you can help me.” The Doctor huffed. “We can build a new society here, as others have. What do you say?”</p><p>“Mmm.” The Doctor stood up, approaching her. “Where’s Isabella?”</p><p>“Isabella?” Rosanna repeated. She’d already forgotten the girl’s name… mistake number one.</p><p>“The girl who led us out of there.” The Doctor turned to look at Rosanna, glaring.</p><p>“Oh, deserters must be executed.” Rosanna answered, as the Doctor’s eyes narrowed. “Any general will tell you that. I need an answer, Doctor. A partnership… any which way you choose.”</p><p>The thing about Rosanna’s offer, it wasn’t like the Doctor hadn’t ever considered such a thing. Turn humans into Time Lords, make Earth into a Gallifrey 2.0… on the contrary, he’d considered it lots of times. And every time, he resisted that urge. For all his grief, all his pain, the Time Lords were all dead for a very good reason. And to stamp out humanity’s potential, just to make them into replacement goldfish for an entire species… The Doctor would never forgive himself.</p><p>“I don’t think that’s such a good idea, do you?” The Doctor asked in response to Rosanna. “I’m a Time Lord, you’re a big fish. The children would be hideous.”</p><p>Rosanna’s face twisted furiously. “Carlo!” She ordered, stepping back from the Doctor. “You’re right, we’re nothing alike. I will bend the heavens to save my race, while you philosophize!”</p><p>“This ends today.” The Doctor growled as Carlo marched into the room. “I will tear down this house stone by stone.” The steward tried to grab onto the Doctor. The Time Lord let his kindly mask slip for just a moment. “Take your hands off me, Carlo.” He commanded, space rippling around the Doctor like it was bending to hide something far larger than him.</p><p>The steward gulped, as the Doctor began to walk to the exit.</p><p>“And you know why?” The Doctor posited to Rosanna. “You didn’t know Isabella’s name.” The door opened, and the Doctor stepped out, officially on the warpath.</p><p>------------</p><p>“I need to think.” The Doctor smacked himself in the head, slamming down in a chair at the table, next to Guido, Sarah Jane, and El. “Come on, brain, work! Work!”</p><p>“If they’re aquatic creatures it explains why they don’t like the sunlight.” Sarah Jane commented.</p><p>“Stop talking. Brain thinking. Hush.” The Doctor commanded, gently putting a hand over her mouth, earning a glare from her.</p><p>“But…” El frowned. “Why school?”</p><p>“Stop talking,” The Doctor put a hand over her mouth as well, “Brain thinking, hush.”</p><p>“I say we take the fight to them.” Guido stated, slamming a finger on the table.</p><p>“Ah-ah-ah!” The Doctor raised his voice.</p><p>“What?” Guido asked in response.</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor glanced at El.</p><p>The girl rolled her eyes and put a hand over Guido’s mouth.</p><p>“Her planet dies, so they flee through a crack in space and time.” The Doctor thought aloud. “She ends up here, closes off the city, and one by one starts converting the girls into more of her species, got that, but what after? They come from the sea, they can’t survive forever on land, so what’s she going to do? …Unless, she’s going to do something to the environment to make the city habitable.” The Doctor realized. “She said she’d bend the heavens to save her race. Bend the heavens,” He removed his hands, placing them on the top of Sarah Jane and El’s heads. “Bend the heavens… She’s going to sink Venice.”</p><p>Guido did a double take. “She’s going to sink Venice?”</p><p>“And repopulate it with the girls she’s transformed.” The Doctor realized with a chuckle.</p><p>“But,” Sarah Jane held up a finger, “You can’t repopulate with just women. You need males.”</p><p>“Yes, I’m aware.” The Doctor laid his head on the table.</p><p>“So, where are the males?” Sarah Jane questioned.</p><p>“In the canals, obviously.” The Doctor answered, not looking up. “It’s the perfect hiding spot. Close enough to the city for them to emerge quickly if needed, but deep enough so they can’t be spotted without assistance. They’ve been waiting down there for God knows how long, waiting for mum to find them suitable suitors. …Eugh.” The Doctor made like he had a bad taste in his mouth. “El, you’re not dating until you’re forty.”</p><p>El frowned. “What’s dating?”</p><p>Something rumbled, and the ceiling began to creak, footsteps coming in from the surface above.</p><p>Everybody’s heads shot up.</p><p>“The people upstairs are very noisy.” The Doctor commented.</p><p>Guido shook his head, even as he kept looking up. “There is no upstairs.”</p><p>“There is no upstairs.” The Doctor repeated, pointing with an anxious smile. “See, how did I know you were going to say that?”</p><p>El leaned close to the Doctor. “Vampires?”</p><p>“No.” The Doctor denied, reaching into his coat for the portable UV lamp. “They’re not vampires. Fish people, remember?”</p><p>A window exploded, glass flying all over the place, as the vampires swarmed outside a window. The window exploded, and the four inside shot to their feet.</p><p>“Oh, they can fly, lovely.” Sarah Jane muttered, protectively grabbing onto El’s shoulders.</p><p>The Doctor waved the light at the window, the girls hissing in response to it. The Doctor produced the sonic screwdriver in his other hand, and pressed down the button, the human forms of the girls turning to tall, fish-like bipeds.</p><p>“What’s happened to them?” Guido asked.</p><p>“There’s nothing left of them.” The Doctor replied, looking at the former humans empathetically. “They’ve been fully converted. Blimey, fish from space have never been so… buxom.”</p><p>Sarah Jane smacked him on the shoulder.</p><p>“Augh, right, move!” The Doctor ordered, Sarah Jane and El moving down the stairs first, followed by Guido and the Doctor.</p><p>“Give me the lamp!” The Italian man shouted, grabbing it, as they hit the bottom floor.</p><p>El made it outside first, Sarah Jane following in the girl’s wake, then the Doctor. Guido, however, stopped, before going back inside, slamming the door.</p><p>The Doctor caught this and ran back over. “Guido!”</p><p>“Stay away from the door, Doctor!” He commanded.</p><p>“Guido!” The Doctor banged his hand on the door. The Time Lord sniffed the air, and with a sinking stomach and widening eyes, realized what he was about to do.</p><p>The Doctor turned on his heel and ran, before the entire area was rocked with a thunderous bang, wood splinters and smoke flying everywhere, as the Time Lord dove to the ground.</p><p>The Doctor rolled onto his back, looking up, as the sky began to darken, clouds pouring out of the top spire of the Calvierri house.</p><p>It had started.</p><p>The Doctor scowled, getting to his feet. “You two… go wait in the TARDIS.”</p><p>“Dad,” El tried to grab his hand, but he gently shook it off.</p><p>“I’ll only be a few minutes.” The Doctor replied, turning to walk down an alleyway.</p><p>Sarah Jane took the girl’s hand and began leading her back to the TARDIS.</p><p>Thunder clapped and people screamed, as the city of Venice stood poised on the brink of destruction.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor walked intently through the halls of the Calvierri House, straight to Rosanna’s ‘throne.’ He should’ve taken the chance to sabotage it while he was there, but at the time, he was focused on talking the woman down, something that would’ve been difficult if he’d been caught sabotaging.</p><p>The Time Lord opened the back panel of the chair, revealing a series of wires and blinking blue lights. Trying to sonic them, the Doctor was interrupted by Rosanna’s arrival.</p><p>“You’re too late.” She said to the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor stood tall, turning to face her.</p><p>“Such determination…” Rosanna remarked, looking up. “Just to save one city. Hard to believe it’s the same man who pulled the trigger on his own species.”</p><p>“If you know that,” The Doctor put the sonic screwdriver away. “Then you’d know I’d do whatever it takes to stop you… Didn’t you realize the girls were gone?”</p><p>Rosanna recoiled from the Doctor, eyes looking around frantically. “You’re lying.”</p><p>“Shouldn’t I be dead?” He asked in response. “Hmm?”</p><p>Rosanna shook in rage, turning on her heel, walking away.</p><p>“Rosanna, it’s not too late to help me.” The Doctor called. “There are twenty-thousand people in this city.”</p><p>“So save them.” She retorted, not looking back as she made for the exit.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, and quickly turned back to the throne. The weather control device Rosanna was using to generate the storm. He had to shut it down, <em>now</em>.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane and El ran down one of the alleyways, and turned a corner, freezing.</p><p>Rosanna’s son, Francesco, was standing there, waiting for them.</p><p>Francesco let a predatory smile overtake him, as he drew his sword.</p><p>Sarah Jane took a step back, going for the broom sat against the wall, but El?</p><p>El just rolled her eyes, and threw out her arm, Francesco being sent flying across the alleyway, as El wiped blood from her nose. The Vampire man landed in a small patch of sunlight, and screamed, trying to shield himself, before he exploded into a cloud of ash.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked on, horrified, and then to El.</p><p>“Shouldn’t have messed with my aunt.” El stated. “Let’s go help dad.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The bell chimed as the Doctor stood at the top of the tower of Calvierri House, clouds darkening faster and faster as they approached the point where they would be ready to let it rain down enough water to sink Venice.</p><p>And the water began to fall, boiling hot, right onto Venice.</p><p>The Doctor sprinted back down the tower, into the throne room.</p><p>“Get out!” The Doctor ordered, as Sarah Jane and El came running in. “I need to stabilize the storm!”</p><p>“We’re not leaving you.” Sarah Jane replied.</p><p>The Doctor turned to look at her. “I said-“ He was cut off as the building shook, all of them being sent to the ground.</p><p>“What was that?” El asked, looking around fearfully.</p><p>“Earthquake.” The Doctor answered, “Manipulating weather like this can cause the ground to shake. But don’t worry about them.”</p><p>“Don’t worry?” Sarah Jane incredulously repeated.</p><p>“No, worry about the tidal waves caused by the earthquake.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Doctor, stop it, now!” Sarah Jane commanded.</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor pointed, “Rosanna’s throne is the control hub, but she’s locked the program. So, tear out every wire and circuit in that thing you can find, go crazy.” The Doctor ran over to it, El and Sarah Jane following. “We need it to shut down and reroute control to the secondary hub, the generator I’m guessing.”</p><p>“What are you going to do?” Sarah Jane asked, she and El pulling out the wires, as the Doctor moved to exit.</p><p>“I’m going to find it!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The bell chimed loudly overhead as the generator ran, the Doctor climbing up the steps, trying to shield his ears from the tolling of the enormous brass construct.</p><p>“Shut up!” The Doctor snarled, grabbing onto the bell’s innards to stop its ringing. “Ah, much better. Right, now where…”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes followed a length of cable running into the ceiling, and the Doctor, very carefully (he didn’t want a repeat of his fourth death) climbed out onto the edge of the tower, and climbed onto the sloped roof, towards the emitter disguised as a roof ornament.</p><p>Sarah Jane and El looked on from the ground, El ready to catch the Doctor should he fall, and Sarah Jane thinking about how much hell she should give him for such a stupid move for when he <em>did </em>fall.</p><p>The Doctor climbed to the top, opening a section of the large golden sphere, revealing an array of moving gears and blinking lights on the hollow inside.</p><p>He scrambled around, trying to find something, before he spotted the small switch on one of the gears, and flicked it, the entire mechanism shutting down in response.</p><p>Almost instantly, the boiling rain ceased, and the clouds vanished, birds chirping happily as the sun returned in full force.</p><p>“Ah…” The Doctor let out a sigh of relief, closing the sphere, as the crowd of Venetians below cheered him on, thankful.</p><p>The Doctor bashfully smiled, but his mood was still not quite happy.</p><p>There was still one more thing to take care of.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Rosanna!” The Doctor shouted, running out onto a small pier, watching as the woman stood, clad only in her long white underdress, standing on the very edge of the pier.</p><p>“One city to save an entire species…” Rosanna sniffled. “Was that so much to ask?” She questioned in despair, looking at the bubbling water below.</p><p>“Rosanna, you can’t go back and change time.” The Doctor slowly tried to approach. “You mourn… and you live. I know, Rosanna, I did it.”</p><p>“Tell me, Doctor,” Rosanna turned to face him, “Can your conscience bear the weight of another dead race? …Remember us.” She turned back around. “Dream of us…” She stated, before walking off the edge.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor ran over to the edge.</p><p>For what it was worth… he could hear the scream of the males in the water, but not her.</p><p>The bubbling water died down, going still.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, standing up.</p><p>Another life he’d failed to save.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Now then,” The Doctor smiled as they walked back through the busy market towards the TARDIS, “Where to next, eh?”</p><p>“Dreamland, I should hope.” Sarah Jane replied, rubbing at her eyes. Now that the adrenaline had died down… She felt like she hadn’t slept in days.</p><p>El yawned. “Tired.” She agreed.</p><p>The Doctor huffed, unlocking the TARDIS. “You humans and your eight hours of sleep.” He shook his head, pushing the door open. “Alright, you, get to it. Bedtime routine, you know the drill.” He said to El, the girl going inside.</p><p>Sarah Jane crossed her arms, smiling.</p><p>“What?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“Look at you.” She said. “Being all parental.”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah.” The Doctor rolled his eyes as Sarah Jane entered. “Wait.” The Doctor held up a finger, listening around. Something was wrong, here… “Do you hear that?”</p><p>“Hear what?” Sarah Jane asked in response. “It’s just silent.” She said, going deeper into the TARDIS.</p><p>The Doctor looked out onto Venice, the only sound from the busy market being the gentle crashing of water on stone.</p><p>As he stepped into the TARDIS, he remembered Rosanna’s words.</p><p>
  <em>“There were cracks. Through some we saw worlds and people, others… nothing but silence, the end of all things…”</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0032"><h2>32. Hawkins, 1995</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In the town of Hawkins, Indiana, things were quiet. Peaceful. The town that had been rocked by the sudden disappearance of a young boy and then his just as sudden return had long returned to normal (the event having took place twelve long years ago), becoming just another dot on the map where not many things happened.</p><p>The only thing not quiet about the town, in fact, were the roosters cawing in the morning, and caw they did. On a twenty-one-acre property not far from the town, however, the distant cawing was quiet, barely little than a quiet echo originating from far in the distance.</p><p>On this twenty-one-acre property stood a house. A bit big for just two people, but more than large enough to hold the future.</p><p>In this house’s kitchen, stood Jane. Holding a bowl, mixing icing for a tin of cupcakes. She’d discovered a sort of hidden talent for baking, and her skills as such spread quickly throughout the town. When you needed a cake made at the last minute, she was the go-to-gal.</p><p>Jane abruptly stopped her mixing, setting the bowl on the counter, doubling over as she felt a kick come from her abdomen. “WILL!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Will Byers rode his bike (As in, motorbike. A <em>Ducati!</em>) up to the house, calm, serene. At only the age of twenty-four, he was living a life most other people, let alone men, could only dream of. His dream house, his dream career, and his dream woman… he was the luckiest man in the entire world, he counted.</p><p>“WILL!” Jane shouted from inside. “IT’S STARTED!”</p><p>Lucky… except for the fake contractions.</p><p>Will hopped off the bike, running inside.</p><p>“Ah!” He grunted, stubbing his toe as he ran in. “Okay, I’m here!” He heaved, running into the kitchen. He ran over, falling to his feet.</p><p>“False alarm.” His wife calmly replied, balancing the bowl of icing on her pregnant belly, eating a bit of the substance off the spoon.</p><p>Will looked at her for a moment. “What?” He asked.</p><p>Jane shrugged. “I don’t know what it feels like.” She tapped Will’s nose with the spoon. “Haven’t had a baby before, remember?”</p><p>Will sighed, but smiled as he got to his feet, a metallic warping and scraping building up outside. “Oh…” He groaned.</p><p>Jane’s eyes went wide, as the sound registered in her ears, and she looked up. “No…”</p><p>“I know!” Will said, going to grab a cupcake out of the tray. “I hate leaf blowers, just use a rake!”</p><p>“No!” Jane shot to her feet, setting the bowl down. “It’s-“</p><p>The scraping ceased with a thud, as the TARDIS materialized outside in the back garden, windows and signage glowing a welcoming orange.</p><p>“It’s him…” Jane breathed with a smile. “He’s here.”</p><p>Will dropped the cupcake and ran outside.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS door was pulled open quickly, the Doctor poking his head out, looking down at the flowerbed he’d inadvertently landed on. Taking a step out onto one of the stones, it gave way, and the Doctor fell, just barely keeping his balance.</p><p>The Time Lord could hear a door open and shut, and the Doctor’s head shot up. “Ah, Willy!”</p><p>The Byers man came walking out, long hair pulled into a ponytail.</p><p>“Doctor!” Will recognized, throwing up his arms. “Oh…” He gulped, looking to the flowers. “Jane is going to <em>kill </em>you.”</p><p>“Where is she?” The Doctor asked, looking around.</p><p>“Oh, she’ll need a bit longer.” Will pointed to the house.</p><p>“Whenever you’re ready, El!” The Doctor called, waiting patiently.</p><p>The door opened, and she came waddling out.</p><p>“Oh, wahey!” The Doctor pointed.</p><p>“Hey!” Jane beamed, running over to the Doctor, pulling him into a hug.</p><p>“You’ve swallowed a planet!” The Doctor pulled back, looking down at her.</p><p>“I’m pregnant.” She informed him with a smile.</p><p>“You’re huge!” The Doctor remarked.</p><p>“Yeah, I’m pregnant.” Jane giggled.</p><p>“When worlds collide!” The Doctor pointed between her and her husband.</p><p>“Dad, I’m pregnant.” She repeated.</p><p>“Oh, look at you both!” The Doctor pulled both of them into hugs. “Ten years older! I’m so proud!” He released them, looking between them.</p><p>“It’s so good to see you again, dad.” Jane smiled.</p><p>The Doctor looked the woman up and down. “…are you pregnant?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah, Hawkins.” The Doctor remarked as they walked down the road of the town square. “Lovely as ever… a bit emptier than I remember.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, everybody sort of packed up and left after the lab got exposed.” Will explained. “How’d you think we were able to get all that property for so cheap?”</p><p>“I imagine you became a lady of the night.” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Ha!” Jane laughed.</p><p>The three came to the small park in the center of town, sitting down on a bench.</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor kicked his legs. “I wanted to see how you were. I don’t just abandon people when they leave the TARDIS, you know. ‘Specially not my little girl.”</p><p>“Aunt Sarah would beg to differ.” Jane retorted.</p><p>“Yeah, well…” The Doctor sniffed. “So, what is it you two do around here?”</p><p>“Well… We have comic books.” Will said. “She writes them, I do the drawings, it’s good. Lots of money.”</p><p>“Comic books, nice…” The Doctor repeated quietly, nodding, as the birdsong began to grow louder. “Lots of flashy pictures… and sound…”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyelids drooped, as the three of them fell to sleep.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Effects!” The Doctor’s eyes snapped open, the Time Lord lying on the console room floor. “Ah, yes!” He shot to his feet, as El and Sarah Jane started blinking sleep out of their eyes as well. His eyes locked on the little girl sitting in the seat, looking down at herself in confusion. “Oh, thank God, I had a terrible nightmare about you!” He pressed a relieved kiss to her forehead. “But it’s okay now, we’re all safe… Blimey.” He turned back to the console. “Never dropped off like that before. But I am getting on a bit, really, don’t let the cool gear fool you. Now, what’s wrong with the console? Red flashing lights… bet they mean something.”</p><p>“Um, dad…” El walked over. “I had a dream too.”</p><p>“That generally happens when you’re asleep.” The Doctor replied, keeping focused on the console.</p><p>“Yeah, but it was weird.” El replied. “I was old, and…” She stopped for a moment, before puffing up her cheeks, and holding her arms out a little way from her stomach.</p><p>The Doctor glanced up at her. She had the same dream. The Doctor stood up, looking the girl over.</p><p>“And you were married…” The Doctor said, “To-“</p><p>“Will.” El finished.</p><p>“Will?” Sarah Jane questioned.</p><p>“Will Byers from Hawkins, hang on.” The Doctor turned to her. “You’re not having the same dream?”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked contemplative for a moment. “No… none of that’s ringing any bells.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed, shaking his head, throwing up his hands. “Alright, look, it doesn’t matter. We all just probably had some kind of psychic episode. That sort of thing’s bound to happen when you have two extremely strong psychics in close proximity to each other. That, or we just jumped a time track.” The Doctor clapped his hands, going back to the console. “Forget it. We’re back to reality now.”</p><p>Birds began to chirp, and Sarah Jane and El looked up.</p><p>“Birds…” El’s eyebrows knit together.</p><p>Their eyelids all drooped, and they dropped to the floor.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Ah!” Will suddenly jumped out of sleep. “Sorry! God, I must be overdoing it…” He rubbed his eyes, as the Doctor shot to his feet, walking around.</p><p>The Time Lord checked his clothing. Blue. He only wore the blue shirt, braces, and bow tie every other day. But thinking back, searching through his memories, he had a clear memory of the lead up to now.</p><p>“El,” He turned to her, “What were you dreaming about?”</p><p>Jane frowned, rubbing her stomach. “Well… we were back on the TARDIS with Aunt Sarah, and I was a-“</p><p>“Kid again.” The Doctor finished, turning back around. “The same dream, exactly the same.”</p><p>“Hold on,” Will pushed himself up, as Jane did the same. “The same dream?”</p><p>“Yeah, the same…” Jane frowned. “Hold on, can’t you remember?”</p><p>“He wasn’t there.” The Doctor replied, tossing a stone up and down. “Sarah Jane couldn’t remember this either, remember?”</p><p>“No.” Jane replied. “Why do dreams have to fade so quickly?”</p><p>“Doctor,” Will rubbed his head, “What’s going on?”</p><p>The Doctor stood, checking the signs. Text never stayed the same in dreams.</p><p>“Is this a Time Lord thing because you’ve showed up again?” Jane asked.</p><p>“Listen to me. Trust nothing.” The Doctor advised, looking around. “From now on trust nothing you see, hear, or feel.”</p><p>“B-But…” Jane stammered, looking around. “We’re awake!”</p><p>“You thought you were awake on the TARDIS too.” The Doctor retorted, examining the area.</p><p>“But we’re home.” Will said.</p><p>“Yeah, and El and I are on the TARDIS too.” The Doctor replied, pushing past the two. “Trouble is, which is which? Which is dream, and which is reality? Hold tight… this is going to be a tricky one.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Augh!” El gasped in surprise, the TARDIS shaking as the engines ran.</p><p>“This is bad!” The Doctor shot over to the console, trying to work the controls. “I don’t like this!” He kicked the console, causing the shaking to stop. “Ack!” The Doctor grunted in pain, clutching the foot he used for the kick as he hopped around. “Never use force! You just embarrass yourself!” He grabbed the railing. “Unless you’re cross, in which case… always use force!” He moved to walk down the steps to the underside of the console.</p><p>“Should I go and get the manual then?” Sarah Jane inquired. That was always the time-tested method of figuring out problems with the TARDIS when she was on board.</p><p>“Threw it in a supernova!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>El tilted her head. “Supernova?”</p><p>“Exploding star!” The Doctor simplified. “And I threw it in there because I disagreed with it!”</p><p>Sarah Jane huffed, shaking her head. She figured that was going to happen eventually, knowing the Doctor she traveled with. The woman shook her head, rubbing her temples.</p><p>“I don’t understand,” Sarah Jane began, “If whatever’s causing this is causing you and El to dream about the future, why aren’t I a part of it?”</p><p>“If we <em>are </em>dreaming about the future!” The Doctor retorted, limping back up, handing El and Sarah Jane tools. “We could still be in Hawkins, dreaming about this! For all we know, she could be giving birth!” He pointed between them. “Trust nothing about anything!” He repeated, going back over to the console.</p><p>The moment the Time Lord touched the controls, the engines stopped, and the ambient humming of the TARDIS’s generators cut out as well, the entire room going dark.</p><p>“…Doctor?” Sarah Jane inquired, as El grasped onto the Doctor’s hand.</p><p>“She’s dead…” The Doctor whispered, looking up in the darkness. “The TARDIS is dead.”</p><p>Birds began to chirp.</p><p>“Ah, El…” The Doctor pointed to her. “Remember, this is real. Sarah Jane… Whatever you’re dreaming about… it isn’t real… either…”</p><p>The three dropped.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor stood, watching a group of schoolers go walking down the street, as snow fell in the town square, Jane and Will laying on each other on a nearby bench.</p><p>The two’s eyes snapped open, and they looked around.</p><p>“Okay, this is the real one.” Jane proclaimed. “Definitely the real one.”</p><p>The Doctor spun on his heel, looking at Will. “Where were you?”</p><p>Will looked taken aback for a moment. “Sorry?”</p><p>“El and I,” The Doctor pointed, “We were back on the TARDIS. Where were you?” He pressed.</p><p>“I-I was a kid again.” Will answered, stammering. “Back in ’83.”</p><p>The Doctor let out a frustrated grunt, as he turned back around, waving his hand in front of his face.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Jane inquired.</p><p>“Checking for motion blur, pixilation.” The Doctor answered. “We could be in a computer simulation.” The Time Lord turned, giving a quick tug on Will’s hair. “Don’t think so, though.”</p><p>“Oh, hello Mister Byers.” An old woman greeted politely, as she passed the group on the street.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at Will. “How does she know you?”</p><p>“Oh, well…” Will humbly and bashfully shrugged. “The comics Jane and I make kind of put Hawkins on the map. We’re sort of town celebrities now.”</p><p>“Interesting.” The Doctor remarked.</p><p>Will recoiled just slightly. “Interesting?”</p><p>“Your dream house, your dream wife, your dream job…” The Doctor looked Will up and down, bobbing. “Maybe this is your dream, what’s that?” The Doctor suddenly snapped his fingers, pointing to a building across the way.</p><p>“Orphanage.” Jane answered.</p><p>“Orphanage…” The Doctor’s eyes narrowed, looking to the building, and the children looking back out. “Why would Hawkins, a town in the middle of nowhere and with a population so low the passenger manifest of most crew ships beat it out, have an orphanage?” He wondered. “There’s something here that doesn’t make sense… let’s go poke it with a stick!” The Doctor grinned, running off that way, Will charging to keep up.</p><p>“Guys, the running!?” Jane called. “Seriously!?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The three walked into the playroom of the orphanage, the Doctor looking around.</p><p>“Misses Byers!” A kid about eight years old hopped up and down excitedly.</p><p>“Hiya, Peter.” Jane smiled gently in response. “How’re things?”</p><p>“Great!” The little boy beamed. “Are you here to read to us again?”</p><p>“Not today, I’m afraid.” She answered.</p><p>A little girl, only about seven, walked up to the Doctor, holding up a wooly sweater that looked like she had made it herself, blue with pink lettering across the back. “Can I borrow you?” She asked politely. “You’re the right size.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, but knelt accommodatingly, looking at the girl. “Kind of in a hurry to move on, freak psychic schism to sort out…” The Doctor looked into the little girl’s eyes, and his narrowed. He recognized eyes like that. “Oh… you’re incredibly old, aren’t you?”</p><p>The little girl just stared back, as birdsong began to fill the three’s ears once more.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Okay.” El drew in a breath. “Hate this. Dad, stop it.”</p><p>The Doctor took something off the console and ran up the stairs.</p><p>Sarah Jane’s teeth chittered. “It’s bloody cold in here.”</p><p>“The heating’s off!” The Doctor responded. “Put on a jumper, that’s what I always do! By the way, El, don’t believe that sweet little girl act!”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Act?”</p><p>The Doctor didn’t offer her an answer. “Everything’s dead. Sensors, core power, we’re drifting.” He walked back down from the upper level. “Someone, something is overriding my controls!” He shouted frustratedly.</p><p>“Well,” A man suddenly materialized at the top of the steps. “That took a while.” He was wearing what looked like a deliberate imitation and exaggeration of the Doctor’s clothing, an oversized bow tie fixed around his neck. “Honestly,” He shook his head, coming down the steps. “I’d heard such good things. The Oncoming Storm, the Last of the Time Lords, him in the bow tie.”</p><p>The Doctor glared at the intruder as he made it to the bottom of the stairs. “Who are you? How did you get into my TARDIS?”</p><p>“What shall we call me?” The intruder smacked his lips. “Well, if you’re the Time Lord… Let’s call me the Dream Lord.”</p><p>“Nice look.” The Doctor said.</p><p>“This?” The Dream Lord looked down at himself. “No, I’m not convinced… bow ties? Seriously?”</p><p>The Doctor narrowed his eyes, reaching into his pocket, before throwing a ball at the Dream Lord.</p><p>The Dream Lord flickered, shimmering, before becoming steady again. “See, I would be impressed, but it’s all there in the name, isn’t it? Dream Lord… spooky, not quite there.” He flickered, appearing across the console room. “And yet, very much here!” He said loudly, the others jumping.</p><p>“I’ll do the talking, thank you.” The Doctor glowered. “Sarah Jane, want to take a guess at what he is?”</p><p>“Dream Lord…” Sarah Jane began. “He… creates dreams, controls them?” She suggested.</p><p>“Oh, and what about the munchkin?” The Dream Lord asked. “Doesn’t she get a guess? In fact, I’d go so far to say that this is <em>all about </em>her. The lab freak who ran away with an idiot in a box… didn’t your mother ever teach you about stranger danger? Oh, wait!” The Dream Lord flickered, appearing back at the other end. “No, I’ve seen your dreams… Blimey, I could cry. If I had tear ducts. And a capacity to care.”</p><p>“Where’d you pick up this cheap cabaret act?” The Doctor growled. Messing with El was the first, and last, straw.</p><p>“Me?” The Dream Lord scoffed. “Oh, you’re on shaky ground.”</p><p>“Am I?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>“If you had any more tawdry quirks, you could open up a tawdry quirk shop!” The Dream Lord retorted. “The madcap vehicle, the cockamamie hair, the clothes designed by a first-year fashion student! I’m surprised you don’t have a little purple space dog just to ram home what an intergalactic <em>wag</em> you are!” The Dream Lord mocked, before looking away. “Where was I? …ah, right.” He flickered, appearing on the upper level. “So, here’s your challenge. Two worlds. One’s real, the other’s fake. Oh, and to make things more interesting, in <em>both </em>worlds you have to face a deadly danger, but only one of those dangers is real. Tweet tweet, time to sleep.” The Dream Lord said, as birdsong began to fill the room. “Oh…</p><p>Or are you waking up?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0033"><h2>33. Attack of the Small Children</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor, Jane, and Will gasped, shooting to their feet.</p><p>“Oh, this is bad, this is very bad.” The Dream Lord came walking into the playroom, the three adults being the only ones there. “Look at this x-ray! Your brain is completely see-through! But then,” He turned to look at the Time Lord. “I’ve always been able to see through you, Doctor.”</p><p>“Hold on,” Will held up a finger, “Who’s this guy? What is this?”</p><p>“You’re split between a dream and reality and it’s up to you all to figure out which is which.” The Dream Lord replied. “Now, the prognosis is this; if you die in the dream, you wake up in reality. Ask me what happens if you die in reality.”</p><p>“Okay,” Will spoke up. “What happens if we die in reality?”</p><p>The Dream Lord cocked his head, looking at Will like he was the stupidest lifeform alive. “You die, stupid, that’s why they call it ’<em>reality.</em>’”</p><p>‘“Have you met the Doctor before?” Jane demanded. “Do you know him?” She turned to the Doctor. “Dad, does he?”</p><p>“Don’t be jealous, he gets around, our old boy. And he is old, don’t forget that.” The Dream Lord turned to Jane. “But never mind that, you’ve got a world to choose. One reality was always too much for you, Doctor. Take two… and call me in the morning.” He grinned, before vanishing.</p><p>The Doctor sat there, glowering at the space where the Dream Lord was.</p><p>“Okay… I don’t know what the <em>hell </em>that was, but I don’t like that guy already.” Will stated.</p><p>Jane crossed her arms, staring down the Doctor. “Who is he?”</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor answered. “It’s a big universe.”</p><p>“Why is he doing this?” She probed.</p><p>“Maybe because he has no physical form.” The Doctor suggested. “That gets you down after a while, so he takes it out on us, folk who can eat and sleep and feel.” He got to his feet, pulling the knitted sweater off.</p><p>“But, wait,” Will held up a finger, “He said die. That means we’re in danger. What kind of danger?”</p><p>“They’ve gone.” The Doctor stated, suddenly realizing the playroom was empty. “They’ve all gone.” He broke into a sprint, running outside.</p><p>The Doctor stopped, looking at the children at play in the park. None of them were the ones from the orphanage, so that begged the question… where had they all gone?</p><p>“B-“ Will looked around, confused. “Where did they all go?”</p><p>“And what did you mean about the ‘little girl act?’” Jane questioned.</p><p>“One of my tawdry quirks.” The Doctor responded. “Sniffing out things that aren’t what they seem.” He said, approaching the park. “So,” He clapped his hands, “Let’s think. The mechanics of this reality split we’re in… time asleep exactly matches time we experience in the dream, unlike regular dreams.”</p><p>“And you and Jane are dreaming the same dream.” Will replied.</p><p>“Yes, sort of communal trance, very rare, very complicated. I’m sure there’s a dream giveaway, a tell.” The Doctor said. “But my mind isn’t working because this town is just so… <em>dull!”</em> He shouted to the heavens. “I’m slowing down, like you two.”</p><p>“Oof!” Jane suddenly doubled over in pain. “Oh. OW!”</p><p>Will and the Doctor looked over to her, frightened.</p><p>“Really… OW!” Jane screamed. “It’s coming!”</p><p>“Oh, God, Okay!” The Doctor ran over.</p><p>“Help her, you’re a Doctor!” Will said to the Time Lord.</p><p>“It’s okay, I’m a Doctor!” He held his hands out, under the woman, ready to catch. “What do we DO!?”</p><p>Jane suddenly took a deep breath. “Okay, it’s not coming.”</p><p>“…what?” The Doctor stood up, looking her in the eye.</p><p>“This is my life now.” She took a step forward. “And it just turned you white as a sheet, so <em>don’t-“</em> She poked the Doctor in the chest. “Call it dull again.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, gulping. “Sorry.”</p><p>Jane turned away and started walking towards the park. She sat down in the seat on one of the swing sets, and the Doctor sat in the one next to her, gently swinging.</p><p>“So, isn’t anyone going to mention the elephant in the room?” The Doctor asked as he swung.</p><p>“I have to be this size,” Jane angrily turned to him, “I’m having a baby!” She turned back.</p><p>“No, no,” The Doctor stammered, “The hormones seem real, but- no. Aren’t we going to talk about that ridiculous ponytail?”</p><p>Will self-consciously touched the bit of hair on the back of his head, as Jane giggled.</p><p>“You hold him down, I’ll cut it off?” The Doctor offered.</p><p>“This from the man in the bow tie?” Will retorted.</p><p>“Bow ties are cool.” The Doctor shot back. He abruptly stood up, taking a few steps, looking at the little girl from before staring at the crowd of children. “I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t let her have any playdates with the baby.”</p><p>The child turned to stare at the Time Lord.</p><p>“What’s she doing?” The Doctor muttered. “What’s she want?”</p><p>Birds began to chirp.</p><p>“Oh, no…” Jane groaned. “Not again…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Cold.” El shivered, clutching herself.</p><p>“There should be some stuff down there.” The Doctor pointed. “Go and have a look.”</p><p>The girl nodded, as she and Sarah Jane went.</p><p>The Doctor hopped down to the underside of the console, walking over to the storage box. He sat the mug he carried on top, and opened it, taking what looked like a mechanical whisk out.</p><p>“What are you dreaming about, Sarah?” The Doctor called over. He walked back up to the console, as Sarah Jane and El came back up, wrapped in blankets.</p><p>“Oh, nothing special.” She answered. “Just… that stretch of my life when I thought you were dead.”</p><p>“Ah. El, start winding if you please.” He handed the generator over to the girl, “Sarah Jane, plug this into the console.” He handed her the plug, moving over to the monitor.</p><p>“Why is the Dream Lord doing this?” El wondered. “Why us?”</p><p>The circular monitor nearby the door switched on, and the Doctor whipped around, facing it.</p><p>“Where are we?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“Trouble.” The Doctor answered, as stars drifted by on the screen.</p><p>A blue, glowing orb appeared on the screen, looking like the TARDIS was getting closer by the second.</p><p>“What is that?” El asked.</p><p>“A star.” The Doctor answered, breathing in. “A cold star.” He charged down the stairs, running over, opening the doors for just a moment. “Ah! That’s why we’re freezing! It’s not a heating malfunction! We’re drifting towards a cold sun! There’s our deadly danger for this version of reality.”</p><p>“So, this is the dream.” El decided. “You said stars burn.”</p><p>“So is this one.” The Doctor replied, trying to warm himself back up. “It’s just burning cold!”</p><p>“Is that even possible?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“Well, it’s happening!” The Doctor retorted, checking his watch. “And we’ve got about fourteen minutes before we crash into it! But that’s not a problem.”</p><p>“Because you’re going to fix this?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“No, because we’ll have frozen to death by then.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>El shivered. “W-What do we do?”</p><p>“Stay calm.” The Doctor outlined. “And try not to get sucked into it, because this might just be the battle we have to lose.”</p><p>“Oh, dear, Doctor.” The Dream Lord suddenly appeared. “Giving up already, are we? There was once an old Doctor from Gallifrey, who ended up throwing his life away. He let down his friends and-“ He looked up, as birds started to chirp. “Oh no, we’ve run out of time. Don’t spend too long over there, or you’ll catch your death here!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor ran over to the heart of the playground, stopping. “Where have the children gone?” He asked, looking at the piles of dust and the discarded bits of plastic lying around.</p><p>“Dunno.” Will shrugged. “Playtime’s probably over.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, running over, scanning each pile of dust with the sonic screwdriver. He suddenly stopped, staring in horror at the notebooks and pencils lying haphazardly nearby.</p><p>“Dad?” Jane questioned. “What is it?”</p><p>The Doctor gulped, standing up. “Playtime’s definitely over…”</p><p>“…oh my God.” Jane breathed, staring at the remains, even as she took a step back.</p><p>“What happened to them?” Will questioned.</p><p>The Doctor glanced over to the street, seeing the children from the orphanage marching in unison down the road. “I think they did.”</p><p>“But they’re just kids.” Jane said.</p><p>“No… They’re old. Very, very old.” The Doctor replied, running over.</p><p>“Oh, what’s this?” The Dream Lord popped into existence as the Doctor approached the horde of children. “March of the Munchkins? Give me a break! This has got to be it. What do you think ‘Jane?’” The Dream Lord asked her. “What do you say? Let’s all jump under a bus and we’ll wake up in the TARDIS! You first!” He pointed at the Doctor.</p><p>“Leave her alone.” The Time Lord snapped, growling.</p><p>“Do that again.” The Dream Lord replied. “I love it when he does that. Tall, dark hero… ‘Leave her alone!’”</p><p>“Just leave her!” Will said.</p><p>“Yeah, you’re not quite so impressive at it.” The Dream Lord scoffed.</p><p>“Drop it.” The Doctor commanded. “Drop all of it. I know who you are.”</p><p>“Of course you don’t.” The Dream Lord glared at the Doctor.</p><p>“Course I do.” The Doctor replied. “No idea how you can be here… but there’s only one person in the universe who hates me as much as you.”</p><p>The Dream Lord gave the Doctor a crooked smile in response. “Never mind me. Maybe you should worry about them.”</p><p>The Doctor turned, watching as the legion of children marched towards them.</p><p>“Hi.” Will awkwardly waved.</p><p>“Hello.” Jane greeted, nevertheless taking a step back.</p><p>“Hello!” The Doctor said. “We were wondering where you lot went! To get reinforcements by the look of it! Are you all right, you look a bit… tense.” The Doctor took a step back.</p><p>“Oh, look, it’s Holly!” Will recognized the girl as she approached. “How’s it going?”</p><p>“Will…” The Doctor warned.</p><p>“Ah, it’s fine.” Will waved a way. “She’s a friend. Hell, I’m practically her uncle-“ Will gasped, as the thirteen-year old lifted him by the shirt. “Was it something I said!?” He screamed, as he was suddenly sent flying. “How did she do that!?” He screeched, shooting to his feet.</p><p>“I suspect she’s not herself!” The Doctor replied. “Don’t get comfortable, get ready to run, fast!”</p><p>“Can’t we just talk to them?” Jane hissed.</p><p>Holly came to the front of the legion, opening her mouth. The trio recoiled, as a green eye, catlike and unblinking, poked out.</p><p>“There’s an eye…” Jane took a step back. “In her mouth.”</p><p>“Oh, God, Mike’s going to kill me.”</p><p>“There’s a whole creature inside her.” The Doctor scanned the girl with the sonic screwdriver. “Inside all of them. Waiting there for years.”</p><p>“That is disgusting.” Will gagged.</p><p>Holly shot forward, the creature inside her body hissing, as a green spray emanated from the eye.</p><p>“Run!” The Doctor pulled Will and Jane out of the line of fire. “Let me talk, you two run!” The Doctor motioned for the creatures to calm down, as Will and Jane tried to run away. “Talk to me, talk… You are Eknodines!” The Doctor named. “A very old, very proud race! You are better than this! Why are you here, why aren’t you at home?”</p><p>“We were driven from our planet-“ Holly began, voice tinged with inhuman undertones.</p><p>“By upstart neighbors.” The Doctor finished, rolling his eyes.</p><p>“So we’ve-“ The child tried to begin again.</p><p>“Been hiding in the bodies of immature humans.” The Doctor cut off. “Clever plot. You’d be hard pressed to find a human willing to harm a child.” The Doctor tugged his bow tie. “Guess that also solves what happened to the parents of the orphanage children.”</p><p>“We were humbled and destroyed. Now… we will do the same to others!” The alien using Holly Wheeler as a mouthpiece proclaimed.</p><p>“Okay, makes sense I suppose.” The Doctor remarked. “Credible enough threat to be real.” He took a step back.</p><p>“Morning.” A mailman greeted, walking past the Doctor.</p><p>Holly’s eyes locked on the man, and she hissed, green mist shooting out from the eye onto the man. He screamed as it burned away at his flesh and quickly reduced him to nothing more than dust.</p><p>“You need to leave this planet.” The Doctor growled, as the alien screeched back at him.</p><p>---------</p><p>“Wait, stop…” Jane requested, breathing heavily as she leaned on the fence outside of the house. Will wrapped an arm around her shoulders, helping her along, up the path to the house.</p><p>An eight-year-old stepped out of the bushes, looking at the two.</p><p>“Okay, this is crazy.” Will stated. “Wait, that’s Mister Clarke’s kid! I hid him in the background of one of our issues!”</p><p>“Richie,” Jane addressed, “We don’t understand.”</p><p>The little boy snarled, an eye poking out of his mouth.</p><p>“Alright, I’ll deal with this one, love.” Will gently pushed Jane to the side, going for a plank of wood nearby. “…I can’t do it. I can’t hit a kid.”</p><p>“Oh, for God’s-“ Jane rolled her eyes, throwing out a hand. The boy went flying far across the air, landing unharmed in the field across the way. “In!” She commanded, opening the front door to the house. She sat down on the stairs, breathing heavily, as Will locked up the door. “We ran away. We just ran and left dad there…”</p><p>“Hey, he’ll be fine.” Will came back over, holding a table. “You know the Doctor. He’s Mister Cool.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor walked, stumbling away from the children pursuing him as birdsong filled his ears.</p><p>The Time Lord stumbled through the door of a nearby shop, the bell ringing as he slammed the door.</p><p>“Oh, I love a good butcher’s, don’t you?” The Dream Lord appeared. “We’ve got to use these places, or they’ll shut down! Oh, but you’re probably a vegetarian, aren’t you? You big, flop haired wuss!”</p><p>“Pipe down, I’m busy!” The Doctor hissed, trying to get into the back room.</p><p>“Oh… maybe you need a little sleep?” The Dream Lord suggested.</p><p>The Doctor suddenly found himself unable to stand, sliding to the floor.</p><p>“But wait,” The Dream Lord loomed over the Doctor. “If you fall asleep here, several dozen angry kindergarteners will destroy you with their horrible eye thingies!”</p><p>The Doctor pulled himself up, trying to plug out the birdsong, as he walked behind the counter, falling down.</p><p>“Yes, we’ve got lots of steak here this week!” The Dream Lord said to the children forcing their way inside. “Lots at stake! Get it?”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes snapped back open, as he scrambled for the refrigerator at the back.</p><p>“Are these jokes wasted on you?” The Dream Lord asked.</p><p>The Doctor’s back hit the door and he slid down, the birdsong picking back up. “Wait, wait, stop!” He pleaded, rooting around for the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>“Oh, oh,” The Dream Lord theatrically covered his eyes. “I can’t watch.”</p><p>The Doctor soniced the door handle and entered the refrigerator, sonicing it shut behind him as he finally succumbed to sleep, dropping to the floor.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Ah,” El shivered, wrapping herself up. “Colder.”</p><p>“The three of us have to agree, now!” The Doctor looked between El and Sarah Jane. “Which is the dream, and which isn’t.”</p><p>Sarah Jane shook her head, shivering. “It’s not this.”</p><p>“…I don’t know.” El quietly admitted, earning her a look from the Doctor. “Both feel real. Very real.”</p><p>“Well, you have to come to a decision, soon!” The Doctor replied. “Nine minutes till impact, it’s all on you, El.”</p><p>“…don’t want to die.” El shivered.</p><p>“We’re not.” The Doctor resolved. “But we’re running out of time. If we fall asleep here, now… we’re in a lot of trouble. If we could divide up, we could have an active presence in each world, but the Dream Lord keeps switching us up.” He suggested, walking around the console. “Why? Why? What’s the logic?”</p><p>“Good idea, veggie.” The Dream Lord appeared. “Let’s divide you all up so I can have a lovely little chat with miss El here.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked up. “Do you hear that?”</p><p>El quickly shook her head. “No.”</p><p>“El, listen.” The Doctor placed steadying hands on her shoulders. “Don’t worry, we’ll be back, just… don’t… listen to him…” He dropped to the floor, along with Sarah Jane.</p><p>------------</p><p>Glass shattered as Will’s eyes snapped open, the children outside trying to break their way through the outside windows.</p><p>Reacting quickly despite the confusion that she still wasn’t awake, Will grabbed his wife under the shoulders, and began dragging her up the steps.</p><p>“Sorry, honey.” Will apologized, grunting. “Sorry.”</p><p>Dragging her to the top of the steps, Will dragged Jane’s sleeping form into the nursery, and slammed the door shut, locking it.</p><p>Will walked over to the window, observing, as the possessed children tried breaking into the house from below. Some were even at the front doors of the TARDIS, trying to break inside the ancient timeship.</p><p>He ran back over, placing a chair under the doorknob, and sat on it, jittering as he waited for her to wake up.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0034"><h2>34. El's Choice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor pressed his ear to the metal door, listening as the alien-enhanced children screeched.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor breathed. “Where is it?” He pressed the button on the sonic screwdriver five times, before pushing out, sonicing the lights above.</p><p>The lights exploded and went dark, the children below being blinded, before the Doctor ran outside, past the stunned children.</p><p>The Doctor ran out onto the street, looking around frantically.</p><p>“Help!” A man called from down the way, one of the children about to rip the door off his vehicle, a VW bus.</p><p>“Oh, you couldn’t live near the shops, could you!?” The Doctor ran down the street towards the car, pulling the child away and shoving them to the ground as gently as he could. “Don’t worry, it’s just me!” The Doctor smiled, climbing into the passenger seat, as the man floored it. The Time Lord snapped his fingers, pointing at the man’s floppy hair that was not unlike the Doctor’s. “Nice hair, what’s your name?”</p><p>“Steve.” He answered, breathing heavily.</p><p>“Steve,” The Doctor patted him on the back, “Don’t worry, I can get us out of this, but there are going to be others that’ll need help.”</p><p>“Right, what do you want me to do?” Steve asked in response.</p><p>“Do you know where Will Byers lives?” The Doctor asked, earning a confirmation. “Good, get us started in that direction.” He ordered, climbing into the back, opening the door.</p><p>“What are you doing!?” Steve asked.</p><p>“Helping!” The Doctor replied. “In, in!” He waved, ushering two women into the van as well. They climbed in, and the vehicle proceeded further down the street. “Come on, quickly!” The Doctor waved a family to jump aboard, making way for the two children and adults. “Right, next stop, outer Hawkins!”</p><p>------------</p><p>El sat, shivering on the floor, the entire console room having frosted over, what little moisture in the air being frozen by the sheer proximity to the cold star.</p><p>“Poor El…” The Dream Lord regretfully remarked, materializing next to her. “First, she was taken from a mother she never knew. Then, she was subject to torturous experiments for her entire life. And now, just when things are starting to look up for her… A moronic alien is going to get her killed.”</p><p>“He won’t.” El stated, shaking angrily now. Even if the Dream Lord was a tangible being, the cold was making it impossible for her to channel her powers.</p><p>“He will.” The Dream Lord retorted, looking to her. “Tell me, El, he told you about his granddaughter, Susan… Didn’t he tell you about any of the others?”</p><p>“Others?” El repeated.</p><p>The Dream Lord chuckled, but there wasn’t any mirth behind it. Only a strange sort of… regret. “You weren’t the first, neither was Sarah Jane. No… you’re just the latest in a long line of people’s he’s taken with him… and you’re certainly not going to be the last. And, oh, El… if you realized just what all of them had been through…” The Dream Lord flickered, disappearing, before a different man appeared, standing before El.</p><p>El’s shaking intensified, as she tried to get away. “Papa…”</p><p>“He’ll make me…” The Dream Lord as Brenner gestured down at himself. “Look like a saint.”</p><p>The Dream Lord flickered again, going back to normal.</p><p>“No.” El stated determinedly. “Dad wouldn’t do that.”</p><p>“Not intentionally.” The Dream Lord replied. “But, well, it’s only a matter of time before something happens. Let’s do a running tally, shall we? Martha Jones, young med-student with her entire life and career ahead of her, had her entire family imprisoned and tortured just for <em>associating </em>with the Doctor. Rose Tyler, unremarkable shop girl, not well off, but not miserable, trapped in a parallel universe for the rest of her life with a cheap knock-off half-breed that probably died five minutes after the Doctor left. And then there’s Donna… Poor, sweet, terrible Donna… forced to forget all that she could be because if she ever remembered, her mind would burn, and she would die.” The Dream Lord sighed, shaking his head. “And those are just the ones who survived.”</p><p>“…what do you want?” El demanded.</p><p>“I want you to choose.” The Dream Lord answered, materializing next to her. “Think about it… You could leave the TARDIS now. Never have to worry about dying on a world lightyears from your own, and settle down into that nice, normal life any child should have. Or, you could stay with him,” He gestured to the Doctor. “And one of these things will happen; You’ll get fed up and leave, he’ll abandon you without a second thought… or you’ll die. Believe me, child, that day will come eventually, and when it does… the Doctor’s already set himself up for the heartbreak.”</p><p>El’s eyes narrowed, as she tried to probe the Dream Lord. The cold was so strong, it was making it impossible for her to establish a connection. “Who are you? Dad knows, but he won’t say… you’re different.”</p><p>“Oh?” The Dream Lord tilted his head. “Is that who you think you are? The Doctor’s daughter?”</p><p>“Yes.” El confirmed.</p><p>“Well,” The Dream Lord flickered. “Parents don’t always tell their children everything…”</p><p>“He does.” El stated.</p><p>“Oh really?” The Dream Lord tilted his head. “Then what’s the Doctor’s name?” He flickered, popping into existence over the Doctor and Sarah Jane. “I mean, look at her.” He gestured down to the woman. “He took a promising young journalist and turned her into an alien hunter so paranoid that she was afraid to let anyone in for some thirty years since he’d last seen her. She was his best friend… and he abandoned her on a street corner. What makes you think he won’t do the same to you?”</p><p>“Quiet.” El ordered.</p><p>“Don’t you see?” The Dream Lord stood up. “This entire exercise has been all about you. The girl who’s never had control her entire life. Well… now you do.” The Dream Lord pointed. “The control to make a choice. A normal life… or this.” He gestured around to the TARDIS. “It’s your choice.”</p><p>The Dream Lord flickered out of existence, leaving El alone.</p><p>El, shivering, took a few shaky steps over to the Doctor, and laid down on the floor next to him, cuddling up to the Time Lord.</p><p>If she was going to freeze to death… it was going to be with her dad.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Everybody out!” The Doctor ordered, ushering them out of the vehicle. “That’s right, into the church! Don’t answer the door for anyone!” Once everybody was out, including Steve, the Doctor hopped back into the driver’s seat, flooring it down the road towards Will and Jane’s house.</p><p>“It’s make-your-mind up time.” The Dream Lord declared, appearing in the back seat. “In both worlds.”</p><p>“Bye.” The Doctor replied. “I need to find my friends.”</p><p>“’Friends?’” The Dream Lord repeated. “Is that the right word for the people you acquire? Friends are people you stay in touch with. Your friends never see you again once they’ve grown up. The old man prefers the company of the young, does he not?”</p><p>The Doctor glared in the rearview mirror, the Dream Lord vanishing as he pulled up to the house.</p><p>The Doctor sat there, watching for a moment, as the children tried to break their way inside. He looked around, spotting a way up into the second floor by climbing onto the garage roof.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor flung the door open, sprinting out.</p><p>------------</p><p>Will held Jane in his arms as her eyes slowly opened, the woman looking around. She gasped, sitting up.</p><p>“How did I get up here?” Jane asked.</p><p>“I carried you.” Will answered. “…you might be just a little bruised.” He flinched.</p><p>Jane looked around frantically. “Where’s dad?”</p><p>“No idea.” Will replied. “Listen, I… I want to do something for you…” He gulped, grabbing his ponytail, quickly snipping it off.</p><p>Jane gasped, covering her mouth. “I was… Starting to like it.”</p><p>Something squeaked, and the two whipped around, looking as the Doctor pulled up the window, climbing in.</p><p>“Sorry!” The Doctor apologized, landing on the floor. “Had to make a stop-off at the butchers! And met Steve Harrington! His hair’s great, we should trade tips!”</p><p>“What are we going to do?” Will frantically asked, the Doctor breathing heavily.</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor replied. “I thought the freezing TARDIS was real, but now… now I’m not so sure.”</p><p>“Oh.” Jane gasped, flinching in pain. “I think the baby’s starting…”</p><p>“Now!?” Will asked. “Seriously!?”</p><p>“Would I make it up at a time like this!?” She screeched in response, as the Doctor shot to his feet.</p><p>“Well, you do have a history of-“ Jane glared at Will. “Being very lovely.”</p><p>Jane gasped, as glass shattered outside.</p><p>“Why are they so desperate to kill us!?” Will demanded, holding onto Jane.</p><p>“They’re scared.” The Doctor answered, “Fear generates savagery.”</p><p>A heavy stone statue was thrown through the window, landing on the carpeted floor. The Doctor ran over, screwdriver at the ready…</p><p>And staggered back, hissing in pain as Holly Wheeler breathed the disintegrating green mist onto him.</p><p>“Dad!” Jane shouted, as the Doctor stumbled back into the wall.</p><p>Will, going straight into defense mode, grabbed the nearby lamp and shoved it into the girl, sending her sliding down. “Oh my God… Holly…” Will breathed in horror, realizing just what he’d done, and who he’d done it do.</p><p>“Dad!” Jane shouted, moving to the Doctor’s side.</p><p>The Doctor took a scratchy breath, gulping in pain. He could already start to feel the membrane holding his cells together breaking apart.</p><p>“Don’t… don’t go…” Jane begged, grabbing onto the Doctor’s hand. “You’ve changed your face! You said this was face number Eleven, do it again!” She sobbed.</p><p>“Not…” The Doctor tried to speak. “Not this time, kiddo…” The Doctor’s hand began to fall away. “El… Jane… Talk to the TARDIS, keep her company, yeah?” Was his last request, before he finally decomposed into nothing but a pile of dust.</p><p>The Last of the Time Lords… dead.</p><p>“No…” Jane sobbed, sitting over the pile. “Daddy…”</p><p>“Jane…” Will took a step forward.</p><p>“Save him…” Jane muttered. “We have to find a way to save him.” She stood to her feet, disregarding the labor pains she was experiencing entirely. “This is the dream.” She said.</p><p>Will looked to her, inquisitive. “How do you know?”</p><p>“Because if this is reality… I don’t want to be a part of it.”</p><p>“…okay.” Will gently took her hand.</p><p>Letting Jane lead the way, the two walked out of the front of the house.</p><p>“Why aren’t they attacking!?” Jane roared, as she marched up to the VW bus.</p><p>“Because this is the dream…” Will considered with a gulp. “Or they know what we’re about to do.”</p><p>She took the driver’s seat, Will filing in next to her.</p><p>“Jane…” Will told her. “In case this is the last time I get to see you… I love you.”</p><p>“I love you too.” She responded, kissing him quickly on the lips. “…but I need my dad.”</p><p>The engine turned over, and Jane floored it, speeding through the fence.</p><p>She aimed for the center arch of the doorway and braced.</p><p>And she knew no more.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes snapped open first, the Time Lord looking around curiously, before feeling the tiny form pressed up to him, trying to keep warm.</p><p>El’s eyes slowly creaked open, and she looked at the Doctor. She would’ve cried, had it not been as cold as it was. “Dad…”</p><p>“So,” The Dream Lord appeared. “You chose this world… well done.” He complimented. “You got it right. And with only seconds left. Fair’s fair. Let’s warm you up.” He said, the cold star outside shrinking, as the TARDIS returned to life. “I hope you enjoyed your little fictions. It all came from your imagination, so I’ll leave you to ponder on that.” He took a step over. “I’ve been defeated… I shall withdraw. Farewell.” He offered, before vanishing.</p><p>The Doctor got to his feet first, moving over to the console. Ice cracked as he threw forward one of the levers.</p><p>“We’re alive…” Sarah Jane let out a sigh of relief, even as her skin was covered in ice. “We’re alive.”</p><p>The engines engaged, and the Time Rotor began moving up and down, moving effortlessly through the ice surrounding it.</p><p>“Dad…” El shivered. “What are you doing?”</p><p>“Me?” The Doctor grunted, twisting a valve. “I’m blowing up the TARDIS.”</p><p>“What!?” Sarah Jane jumped.</p><p>“Notice how helpful the Dream Lord was?” The Doctor asked. “Yes, there were lies, misdirection, and I could’ve done without the limerick--but he was very keen on making us choose between dream and reality.”</p><p>Something banged as the engines warbled, the time rotor beginning to glow red.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted.</p><p>“The Dream Lord conceded!” Sarah Jane reminded. “We won! This isn’t a dream!”</p><p>“Yes it is!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Dad, stop!” El requested.</p><p>“Star burning cold?” The Doctor scoffed. “Do me a favor! The Dream Lord has no power over the real world! He was making us choose between two dreams!”</p><p>“How do you know?” El demanded.</p><p>The Doctor grinned. “Because I know who he is.”</p><p>The Doctor slammed his hand down on a button, and the console room was bathed in light, as the TARDIS exploded.</p><p>------------</p><p>El turned the corner into the console room, walking down the steps.</p><p>The Doctor stood, back against the console, examining something in his hand. “Any questions?” He asked, as the girl and Sarah Jane approached.</p><p>The older woman frowned, looking at the substance in the Doctor’s hand. “What is that?”</p><p>“A speck of psychic pollen.” The Doctor answered. “From the Candle Meadows of Karass Don Slava.” He ran a finger over the little orb. “Must’ve been hanging around in here for ages, fell in the Time Rotor,” He pointed to the moving blown glass pillar, “Induced a dream state in all of us.”</p><p>The Doctor hurriedly walked down the steps, opening the TARDIS door, before blowing the substance out into the vacuum of space, slamming the doors shut.</p><p>“So that,” Sarah Jane pointed, “Was the Dream Lord.”</p><p>“No, no.” The Doctor turned around. “Sorry, wasn’t it obvious?” The Doctor looked between them. “The Dream Lord was <em>me.</em>”</p><p>El recoiled slightly.</p><p>“Psychic pollen, it’s a mental parasite.” The Doctor explained. “Takes everything you hate about yourself, gives it a voice, turns it against you. …I’m 907. It had a lot to go on.”</p><p>El scowled, smacking the Doctor in the chest. “Not going to get me killed!”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at her. “That won’t stop me from worrying.”</p><p>“But how come it didn’t take anything from us?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“Well, I know it took a little bit from El. But the rest of the darkness in you lot?” The Doctor retorted. “It would’ve starved to death in a nanosecond! I choose my friends with great care.” He pointed to the two of them. “Otherwise, I’m stuck with me own company, and you know how that works out.”</p><p>“Dad, those things he said.” El poked the Doctor. “Wrong. Wrong, wrong!”</p><p>“Hm.” The Doctor smiled. “Thanks.” He moved to the console, before abruptly turning around. “Hang on, El, how did you figure out it was the dream? I was dead, so it’s not like I could’ve helped.”</p><p>“Me and Will…” El coughed. “We found the van. Crashed it.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened. “Crashed!? How’d you know it was a dream before you did that!?”</p><p>“I…” El played with her hands. “I didn’t.”</p><p>“El…” The Doctor looked at her. “That was stupid, and reckless!”</p><p>“Don’t care.” She told him plainly. “Not living without my dad.”</p><p>A silence fell over the console room for a few moments.</p><p>“Right, well!” The Doctor clapped his hands. “Where to now?”</p><p>El shrugged. “Anywhere.”</p><p>“Anywhere’s good, I can do anywhere.” The Doctor replied, setting the controls.</p><p>Before he engaged the engines, however, the Doctor looked down at the reflective surface of the console and caught sight of the reflection looking back at him.</p><p>The Dream Lord smiled.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0035"><h2>35. Of Keys and Tattoos</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After the Dream Lord is driven away, the day passes normally. The Doctor takes them to a planet famous for its spas, the Doctor’s way of apologizing after a particularly difficult adventure. Things passed serenely, as Sarah Jane said. It was just a day of rest, allowing them all to unwind.</p><p>El, however, even at the end of the day, is still tense.</p><p>So, when it finally came time for El to go to sleep, she found that she couldn’t. Every time she tries to close her eyes, the reminder that the Dream Lord had been there, waiting to trap them in their own heads, crossed her mind, and her eyes snapped back open.</p><p>So, El didn’t sleep. She got to her feet and left her room.</p><p>She had to find the Doctor. He was the only one who’d understand.</p><p>Wandering the corridors of the TARDIS, the girl eventually came out into the console room, the Doctor sitting on the little swing below, working on… something.</p><p>El walked down the steps. “Dad.”</p><p>The Doctor’s head shot up, before he smiled, but tilted it. “I thought you were supposed to be asleep?”</p><p>“I…” El played with her hands. “I couldn’t.”</p><p>“Oh?” The Doctor kindly asked. “How come?”</p><p>“…Dream Lord.” El answered.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, putting the tool he held out of his mind for the moment. “Don’t worry, he’s gone now, not coming back.”</p><p>El shook her head. “That’s not…” She focused her mind, trying to remember how she learned to speak in the dream world. “Do you remember?”</p><p>“Remember what?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“The dream world.” El elaborated. “You left me on Earth. Do you remember?”</p><p>“…yes.” The Doctor eventually offered.</p><p>“Okay…” El nodded, that would make it a bit easier. “I remember too.”</p><p>The Doctor looked at the girl, concerned. “You remember?”</p><p>El nodded. “Ten years.”</p><p>Ten years of a life that never happened, where after she started to call the Doctor dad, it got too much for her to be on the TARDIS, and she asked him to drop her on Earth. Meeting Will properly for the first time, that very first date where they wound up soaking wet because it was just too fun playing out in the rain. Discovering that she actually had quite a way with words with the right teacher. The house in Hawkins, the baby…</p><p>“I remember it.” El said. “All of it.”</p><p>“Oh, El…” The Doctor breathed, pulling her into a hug. “I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry you had to experience that.”</p><p>“It’s… fine.” El replied. “But why do I remember? Dreams fade.”</p><p>The Doctor drew a breath. “Yeah, they do. But those weren’t ordinary dreams. They were more like… simulations, induced only without technological help. Those ten years of memories, the ones from the other world where you left the TARDIS, those happened to you… they just happened in your head.”</p><p>“But… why?” El asked.</p><p>“The Dream Lord needed to make the illusion real.” The Doctor explained. “Otherwise… we wouldn’t have had such a hard time choosing between dream and reality.”</p><p>“Okay…” El slowly nodded.</p><p>“You alright?”</p><p>El swallowed. “I don’t know. Dad, if Will was in there with us, and he was dreaming about being a kid back in Hawkins… was he real?”</p><p>“…I don’t know.” The Doctor admitted. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>“Don’t be.” El replied. “I chose.” She turned on her heel, and went back up the stairs, towards her room.</p><p>“El,” The Doctor called after her, “Don’t worry. Things’ll get better.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>Things, as it turns out, <em>do </em>get better. The Doctor notices it, to his credit. For such a dense Time Lord, he really is perceptive.</p><p>The memories of the other world start to fade, either by their own accord, El making an effort to push them out, or the TARDIS helping the process along.</p><p>El doesn’t seemed bothered by it, quite the opposite, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.</p><p>The Doctor smiles, as he notices that, even after the mess with the Dream Lord and ten years of a false life, El seems… happier.</p><p>There is, however, one thing.</p><p>El’s looks down at her wrist, and scowls. That number is still there. Used to be, she didn’t mind it, it was the only proof of herself that she had.</p><p>But after spending time with the Doctor, time in that dream, it no longer feels like her. Now, she even thinks she hates it. It’s the last reminder of a place in her past, a place she tried to push away as far as she could.</p><p>So, she storms up to the Doctor, and simply says; “The number. I want it gone.” She said, holding out the culprit arm.</p><p>The Doctor blinked, surprised at just how forward she was being. “Sorry, did you just say <em>gone</em>? What for?”</p><p>“Not Eleven anymore.” She said. “El.”</p><p>The Doctor looked down to her and smiled. “Well then, I’m sure we can come up with something. Removal might be an option, but, well… there’s really no way to do that without cutting it off.</p><p>El sharply inhaled again.</p><p>“Hmm…” The Doctor thought, before snapping his fingers. “Got it.” He glanced back at her. “If I stay with you, do you think you can overcome your fear of needles again?”</p><p>El said nothing but nodded.</p><p>“Then let’s go.” The Doctor set the controls. “There’s an old friend of mine who I think can help.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Mickey the Idiot. That’s what they used to call him.</p><p>Way back when, in the year 2005, he was just a kid living on a Council Estate, doing odd jobs around, working as a mechanic, trying to make his own way. He had a girlfriend, Rose, whom he actually did love quite a bit, and while they weren’t very happy, they were content.</p><p>Then, the Doctor showed up. The one with big ears, the green jumper, the leather jacket… and then, Rose vanished for a year, Mickey took the blame for her supposed murder, and then they popped back into his life, expecting him to just go along with it, so, excuse him for being just a bit resistant. Course, that was a long time ago.</p><p>Mickey now recognized that the Doctor’s jabs and name-calling weren’t really because of a strong dislike, but more of a way to try and get Mickey to stand up for himself, to grow… however much Mickey himself got hurt because of it.</p><p>And grow, Mickey did. From a meek, even a bit cowardly man, into the man he was now. Mickey Smith, who fought against the Daleks and the Cybermen. Mickey Smith, married to Martha Jones (in a story that is way, <em>way </em>too long to regale you with here). Mickey Smith… with a tattoo parlor of all places.</p><p>Yeah, I didn’t see that one coming either.</p><p>It wasn’t too large of a place, just a little bit of shop space not far from Piccadilly Square, but he’d worked hard for it, earning it his own self, without UNIT or Torchwood’s help. It was his pride, his joy… even if it was slow most days.</p><p>So, Mickey counted himself lucky when the door opened with a chime.</p><p>The man looked up from his Nintendo, towards the floppy-haired man with the ridiculous clothes, and the girl by his side, holding his hand.</p><p>“Sorry, mate,” Mickey said, “It’s by appointment only. Kind of a busy man.” An understatement, with the horde of high-tech alien hunting gear in the back just in case something came up.</p><p>“Really?” The man asked. “Doesn’t look too busy.”</p><p>“I didn’t say it was busy here.” Mickey replied. “Sorry, but I don’t do walk-ins.”</p><p>“Oh, that’s too bad.” The man took a big brown paper bag, putting it down on the counter. “I came prepared and everything.”</p><p>Mickey looked curiously into the bag, and his eyes bugged out, at what must have been five-grand, all in tens, in the bag.</p><p>Mickey glanced back up at the man. “…Alright, come on.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“So,” Mickey grabbed his tools, “Sit here.” He directed the man.</p><p>“Um, actually, I wasn’t getting one for me.” The man rubbed the back of his neck, before pointing to his kid, who sat down in the chair.</p><p>Mickey quickly shook his head. “I don’t do kids.”</p><p>The girl crossed her arms. “Strong.”</p><p>“Don’t care how strong you are, I’m not inking a kid.” Mickey retorted.</p><p>“Mickey,” The man put his hand on Mickey’s shoulder, “Can I show you something?” The man gently grasped his kid’s hand, and turned it over, showing off the number on her wrist.</p><p>“What the hell is that?” Mickey demanded.</p><p>The man threw an arm around Mickey’s shoulders, pulling over to the side. “Look, I’m an agent from UNIT. I came here because they said you could keep silent. But, um… The long and short of it is, they found a ship heading from Spain to Saudi Arabia. In the cargo hold…” He looked to the girl. “A dozen kids just like her.”</p><p>“Jesus…” Mickey breathed, looking at the girl.</p><p>“UNIT’s helping the rest get to good homes, but she’s in my care now. That number’s a living reminder of where she came from. She wants to forget.” He explained.</p><p>Mickey looked to the child, sitting in the chair patiently. She looked so tiny, and like she had just barely started to recover from whatever ordeal she’d been rescued from, buzzcut hair only starting to lengthen out.</p><p>And those eyes… They were not a child’s eyes; they were the eyes of someone who’d been put through pain incomparable to anything else.</p><p>Mickey had only seen eyes like that once before.</p><p>“Alright,” Mickey sighed. “Fine. But, you tell nobody about this.”</p><p>“Done.” The man nodded, as the tattoo artist went back over.</p><p>“So,” Mickey sat down kindly next to the girl, “What have you thought about getting?”</p><p>The girl kept quiet momentarily, before handing Mickey a little scrap of paper, a tiny design etched on it. A little key, shaped like…</p><p>Mickey’s hand subconsciously reached into his pocket. Even after all these years, he’d never let his TARDIS key out of his sight.</p><p>Still, it was nothing more than coincidence, and Mickey nodded, getting the equipment ready.</p><p>“Now, hold still.” Mickey advised. “It’s going to hurt a little, but it won’t kill you.”</p><p>The girl nodded as her caretaker went to the other side, holding onto her hand.</p><p>It was a rather simplistic thing, to make a key out of the number, but Mickey was a true artisan at his craft, taking the simplistic design of the key he’d been shown, interpreting it to make it look three-dimensional, even adding a little bit of grey.</p><p>The girl remained silent throughout the whole process. Far too silent.</p><p>“Alright,” Mickey said at last, removing the equipment, switching it off. “You’re going to want to leave this on for about five hours,” He instructed, gently bandaging the girl’s wrist. “When that’s done, keep it clean, and don’t pick the scab. Don’t use scented soap.”</p><p>The girl nodded.</p><p>“Right, scoot.” The man ordered, sitting down in the chair.</p><p>The girl tilted her head curiously.</p><p>“What?” The man asked. “You thought I was going to take you to get a tattoo, but I wasn’t going to get one? Tattoos are cool.” He reached into his pocket, passing Mickey the pattern he wanted. “Same area as hers, if you please.”</p><p>Mickey’s eyebrows knit together, as he caught sight of the circular pattern. Odd. Something about it seemed… familiar. Never mind that, the whole design looked like star charts of some kind.</p><p>Still, Mickey turned back on the equipment, and set to work.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Baby.” The girl huffed, as the man finally finished receiving his tattoo.</p><p>“It hurt!” The man defended, before turning to Mickey. “Thanks, again.”</p><p>“You paid well, and I have a soft spot for kids.” Mickey replied.</p><p>“Right, well…” The man stood awkwardly, before nodding. “Goodbye.” The door clinked as he pushed it open, walking out.</p><p>Mickey watched, as they walked, turning a corner.</p><p>He frowned. That was a dead-end. Why would they-?</p><p>That train of thought was cut off, as Mickey heard the thud, and the scraping noise that only one craft in the universe could make.</p><p>Instantly dropping what he was doing, Mickey sprinted out, following the two’s steps, before stopping.</p><p>The key in his pocket grew hot as the TARDIS dematerialized, wind blowing out from it, before the ship faded into nothing.</p><p>Mickey blankly reached into his pocket for his phone. “Martha?” He spoke, still staring at the spot. “You are not going to believe who I just ran into.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“So,” The Doctor said, placing a little bit of a blue-colored lotion-like substance on El’s tattoo. “Whaddya think?”</p><p>El looked down at it as the substance quickly faded, leaving nothing more than the image of the TARDIS key, perfectly visible, with no sort of scabbing or scarring. “Perfect.”</p><p>“I’m glad you like it.” The Doctor replied, applying some of the substance to his own. “Still not sure about mine…”</p><p>“Pretty.” El complemented, looking at the intricate lines and circles on the Doctor’s skin. She frowned, eyebrows furrowing. “What is it?”</p><p>“Well, it’s your name.” The Doctor answered, showing it off to her. “In Gallifreyan.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “My name? Why my name?”</p><p>“Because, as your father, you are now officially the most important girl in my life.” The Doctor chuckled. “Well, that, and if I got my own name tattooed, that would mean Mickey Smith was one of the few people in the universe to know it.”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor, inquisitive. “…What is it? Your name?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced away. “…Maybe I’ll tell you, one of these days. But right now, as far as you’re concerned, it’s either Doctor or dad.”</p><p>El nodded, before pulling him into a hug. “Thanks.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Anything for my little girl.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You gave her a tattoo?” Sarah Jane quietly demanded, looking on the verge of anger.</p><p>“No.” The Doctor replied. “We covered up the one that was already there. Big difference.”</p><p>“Don’t you know how damaging that is?” Sarah Jane questioned. “She’s going to be stuck with it for the rest of her life.”</p><p>“Not unless she gets it removed.” The Doctor responded.</p><p>“So, why didn’t you get the first one removed?” Sarah Jane demanded.</p><p>“Sarah,” The Doctor told her, “Think of it as a… metaphor. Destroying that tattoo outright is simply trying to make a bad thing go away. But, by making a new tattoo out of the old one, it’s turning a bad thing into a good thing.”</p><p>Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “Oddly philosophical of you.”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “That… and it did give me a good chance to mess with the idiot. I mean Mickey.”</p>
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<a name="section0036"><h2>36. Instant Sibling, Just Add Time Travel!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So, funny story. That time El met her future self in the grocery store? Not the last time… far from it.</p><p>It happens again one night, aboard the TARDIS. El is in her room, trying and failing to fall asleep to the sound of the television on its lowest volume setting, before the door abruptly opens. Not the door to the corridor, but the door into the bathroom.</p><p>Needless to say, nobody should be in there, so El instantly shoots up, ready to fight if need be.</p><p>Herself is standing there, hair wrapped in a towel, toothbrush in her mouth, clad in pajamas.</p><p>“Ah.” Future-her blinks. “This is happening now? Ah, hell.”</p><p>“What are you doing here?” El asks, looking herself up and down.</p><p>“Well, it wasn’t intentional, if that’s what you mean.” She answers. “I was just in there, having a bit of <em>me </em>time, and when I walk out, you’re sitting there on the bed. If anything, I should ask what <em>you’re</em> doing there.”</p><p>El crossed her arms. “Still haven’t actually answered.”</p><p>Future-El rolled her eyes. “Was I always that curious? Fine, if you must know, the TARDIS exists outside of time and space, that includes the interior. Time flowing from one moment to the next is determined by the TARDIS herself and a series of regulators, if those regulators break down, then it can cause past people or objects to appear in the TARDIS’s future relative to them, or vice-versa.”</p><p>El blinks. “Do… I have to remember that?”</p><p>Future-her laughs. “No, it just happens.”</p><p>“So,” El glanced at herself, the person she would become given enough time, “How do we fix it?”</p><p>Future-El only shrugged. “We don’t. The TARDIS has already gotten to it herself.” She looked up to the ceiling. “Isn’t that right?”</p><p>The TARDIS responded with a warm gust of air, and joyously pulsating lights.</p><p>“See, the TARDIS has repair systems installed for this sort of thing already.” She explained. “Dad can’t keep everything in working order all by himself.”</p><p>El nodded in understanding. “What do we do until its fixed?”</p><p>“Well,” The future-her checked the alarm clock nearby. Kind of pointless on board a time machine, and especially pointless when the time machine’s interior flow of time was governed independently from everything else, but still. “We’ve got about three hours before ma- I mean, the TARDIS- fixes this mess, Dad’s probably on one of his secret midnight rendezvous with River, and Aunt Sarah is a <em>really </em>heavy sleeper. So, you know what that means?”</p><p>El tilted her head.</p><p>“Ever hear the word ‘joyride?’”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The two Els walked into the console room, the older one striding over to the controls with a purpose.</p><p>The younger of the two watched in awe as her future self began operating the controls effortlessly like flowing water, the way she moved from panel to panel, switch to switch, speaking for years of piloting experience, or a really good teacher.</p><p>“You can…?” El breathed as the engines engaged calmly and quietly.</p><p>“Yep.” She answered, moving to the other side of the console, twisting a little dial. “Probably shouldn’t be so cavalier with future knowledge, but I remember seeing this from your perspective, so I suppose it’s okay.”</p><p>“But… how?” El asked.</p><p>“I had a very good teacher.” She answered.</p><p>“River?” El questioned.</p><p>“Ha!” The Future-El laughed, punching something into the keyboard. “No. As much as I love River, and as better as she is at piloting the TARDIS than dad, she couldn’t beat me on her best day. In fact, you might say… I taught her a lesson.”</p><p>“No way.” El breathed.</p><p>“Yes, way.” The future version replied. “That’s one spoiler I’m allowed to give you.” She pushed the red lever near the typewriter up, the Time Rotor locking into place. “There. See, dad’s style of piloting is fun and all, but mine is easier on the noggin, wouldn’t you say?”</p><p>El nodded. Her head was certainly free of the normal headache that came with the Doctor’s flying.</p><p>“Now,” Future El walked over to the doors, “Let’s go have some fun.”</p><p>“Wait.” El stopped herself. “PJs.”</p><p>The future version waved it away. “Oh, nobody’s going to care. Worst-case scenario, we get some stares. Come on!”</p><p>El smiled, her future version’s excitement rippling back to her, as she flung the door open, and stepped out.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El’s eyes widened as the TARDIS doors shut behind her, and she looked around at the place in awe. Crowds of people walked down a street with shops lining the sides, some holding balloons in odd shapes, some carrying bags, others carrying nothing at all.</p><p>“Where are we?” El asked, looking up to herself.</p><p>“A place that’s very special to me.” She answered with a smile. “Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. First theme park I ever visited. The happiest place on Earth.”</p><p>“Theme park?” El questioned.</p><p>“Oh, this place has it all.” She answered, “Food, rides, people in suits playing characters from beloved cartoons. The food here is actually better than most theme park fare.”</p><p>El looked to the man walking down the street in the costume of a cartoon mouse, waving happily to the passersby, before looking back to herself. “What did you say we do here?”</p><p>The older version took her younger self’s arm. “Come on, kid. Let’s go.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I’m not…” El looked up at the plasticine mountain, a waterfall coming out of the top.</p><p>A log with people inside dropped from the top, the people inside screaming at the top of their lungs as they dropped, before splashing into the water below.</p><p>“I don’t know.” El finally said, looking to her future self.</p><p>“Aw, come on, it’ll be fun!” Future-El gently took her hand, leading her up to the entrance. “I’ve been on it a dozen times! And you know it’s gotta be fun if <em>I’ll </em>do it.” She took out a small, blank piece of paper, pressing it to the face of a little glowing scanner, before it flashed green, allowing them through. “I nicked dad’s spare psychic paper.” She explained, leading her younger self through the queue.</p><p>“But what about those people?” El asked, looking to the line of people on the other side. It wasn’t fair for them to skip, and the others to have to wait.</p><p>“This is the fast pass lane; we can get away with it.” She retorted, “Come on, come on.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Okay,” Future-El guided El into the seat of the log, before sitting down next to her. “This bar’s going to press down on you, but that’s so you’ll be safe.” She explained. “It’s not like the bad place.”</p><p>El drew a breath, and waited as the bar came down, and the plastic log set off.</p><p>They coasted comfortably for a while, before climbing the first hill, El looking to the animatronic frog sitting nearby warily. “Smiler.”</p><p>Future-El chuckled. “No, no. That’s just a really fancy puppet.” She explained as the log came up to the next section. “Oh, the music! The best part!”</p><p>The log took the first little drop, and El clutched onto her future self.</p><p>The woman laughed. “If you’re having that much trouble on the first drop, you’re in for one hell of a time.” She commented, as they entered the inside of the mountain, full of the animatronic animals singing in a cartoonish landscape. “Glad I chose to come here before the ride retool.” She said. “The last thing you need are voodoo masks screaming ‘are you ready?’ at you.”</p><p>El didn’t listen to herself, focusing on the story the ride seemed to be telling. A troublemaker rabbit was being chased around by a big, dumb bear, and a fox. The rabbit evaded them at every turn but got caught at the end. El wondered what was going to happen next… and that was when the log started to climb in the darkness.</p><p>The log climbed and climbed, and El’s breathing sped up, as they approached the light at the end. The log went over the top of the hill and began to drop.</p><p>El screamed as the bottom approached, her future self whooping as the log dropped. Finally, they hit the water at the very end, being doused in the substance as they were at the very front.</p><p>It took a moment for her to realize it, but El’s screams had turned to laughter as well.</p><p>“See?” The future version directed to her younger self. “Fun.”</p><p>El nodded, as the log came back around to the start. “Fun.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>After getting off the ride, the older one guided herself through the gift shop, looking at the wall of screens that held images of people at the drop of the ride.</p><p>El wondered what they were doing there, before a picture of… herselves appeared.</p><p>The younger one was screaming loudly, obviously, eyes bugging out as she clutched onto her future self for protection, while the older one laughed, face the picture of joy.</p><p>“Oh, you and your sister are so cute!” The woman working the picture kiosk gushed.</p><p>“Thanks.” Future-El said, buying a copy of the photo. “Come on, El.” She took her younger self’s hand, before moving on.</p><p>---------</p><p>The door creaked shut as the two walked back into the TARDIS. El looked dead tired from their little excursion into the park, but her future self seemed perfectly bursting with energy, as she set the TARDIS back into motion.</p><p>“Alright, I’ve set the autopilot to take the TARDIS right back to the moment it left.” Future-El explained. “Dad won’t even know we’ve been gone. Let’s go, squirt, time to get you into bed.”</p><p>The younger El nodded tiredly, allowing the future version to lead her way.</p><p>The two Els walked back into her room, the younger one quickly changing into a different set of pajamas, before laying down.</p><p>“There.” The older one smiled satisfactorily. “Shouldn’t have any problems falling asleep now.”</p><p>“Stay…” El weakly requested.</p><p>“You know I can’t.” The older version gently replied. “I have my own TARDIS to get back to. But… I will stay until you’ve gone to sleep.” She said, kicking up her feet on the bed next to herself.</p><p>“Okay.” El said. “…me.”</p><p>The Future-El laughed quietly. “If you have to call me something, call me Jane.”</p><p>“Jane…” El repeated. “The voice on Starship UK called me that. And I was called that in the dream world.”</p><p>“Of course,” Jane replied. “It <em>is</em> our name. Well, birth name. I still go by El. Feels more natural than Jane. Sorry, rambling. Get to sleep.”</p><p>“Okay…” El closed her eyes. “Jane? …thanks.”</p><p>“Well, you heard that lady at the kiosk. We’re sisters.” Jane replied. “I’d be a very bad sibling if I didn’t help you when you needed.”</p><p>“Sisters…” El drifted away with that thought in her mind.</p><p>The gap in age between the two El’s may not have been too large, but they were practically different people. People who shared blood, but were too far apart to be like parent and child, and too close to be something more distant like cousins. Yes, El decided, sisters worked.</p><p>-------------</p><p>When El woke up the next morning, Jane was gone. The towel and toothbrush, the only evidence she had ever been there, gone as well. At first, she thought it was a dream. The product of her imagination running away with some of the ideas in that book explaining family trees that she’d seen in the library.</p><p>But then, El looked to her bedside table.</p><p>And the little picture left behind.</p><p>El hoped Jane would come back again, someday soon.</p>
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<a name="section0037"><h2>37. The Hungry Earth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Behold!” The Doctor loudly proclaimed, throwing the TARDIS doors open. “Rio de Janeiro!”</p><p>El and Sarah Jane blinked, stepping outside.</p><p>“Yeah, no.” Sarah Jane told the notoriously unreliable Time Lord.</p><p>El frowned, as she looked on the old graveyard, wet from recent rainfall, the sky thick with grey clouds. “Looks… different to how you described it. No sun.”</p><p>“No!” The Doctor loudly replied. “But feel that!” The Doctor suddenly began hopping up and down. “The ground feels… strange.”</p><p>Sarah Jane let out a frustrated sigh. “Doctor, where are we?”</p><p>The Doctor sniffed the air, and stuck out his tongue, smacking his lips. “Somewhere in Wales, I’d say. Oh!” He suddenly ran around the outside of the building, looking at the patches of discolored ground below, before stopping at one. “Blue grass… patches of it all around the graveyard.” He noted, narrowing his eyes, before turning to the others, putting away the sample he took. “So, Earth, 2020! That’s about ten-ish years in your future, Sarah Jane.”</p><p>“Really?” Sarah Jane looked around. “Doesn’t look that different.”</p><p>“Did 2000 look too terribly different to 2010?” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Dad?” El suddenly asked, pointing to a hill into the distance. “Who’re they?” Three people were standing on it in the distance, a tiny blue object behind them.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes focused in that direction, and they narrowed. “Can’t be…” He reached into his jacket, pulling out a pair of binoculars to look through. “It is!” He said in surprise. “It’s you, El! And Sarah Jane!” The Doctor answered. “And… <em>JACK HARKNESS!?”</em> He bellowed in rage. “OI! You get away from her!”</p><p>“What are we doing over there?” El inquired.</p><p>“God only knows.” The Doctor replied, focusing through the binoculars. “Well, we are in Wales. Jack probably flirted his way into interstellar war again and had to call us to fix it.”</p><p>Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “Again?”</p><p>“Yeah… the Drahvins didn’t take too kindly to him during our visit to their homeworld.” The Doctor replied. “He got half the entire species pregnant. Don’t ask me how he managed that.”</p><p>“Oh, oh!” El began hopping up and down excitedly. “Let’s go talk to them.” As strange as it sounded, she wanted to see Jane -herself- again.</p><p>“No.” The Doctor gently grabbed her shoulder, preventing her from going that way. “Best not. These things can get complicated, trust me. And… Oh, look!” The Doctor pointed to a large metal support structure, painted bright yellow, with a metal arm extending down into the ground below. “Big mining thing. Oh, I do love a big mining thing. See, way better than Rio.” The Doctor pointed. “Rio doesn’t have a big mining thing.”</p><p>“Let me guess,” El began, “Look?”</p><p>“Yep!” The Doctor confirmed. “Let’s go and have a look.” He suddenly dashed off in the direction of the drill.</p><p>Sarah Jane sighed, shaking her head. “I should’ve known his piloting hasn’t improved one iota since I was last aboard.”</p><p>“It’ll work out.” El said, as they moved to follow. Who knows, the Doctor’s inability to pilot might be the inciting event that caused El to learn how to fly the TARDIS.</p><p>“Oh,” Sarah Jane suddenly patted her pockets with a sigh. “I forgot my sonic lipstick again. Go with your father, I’ll catch up.”</p><p>El nodded and turned to catch up with the Doctor.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane walked up to the TARDIS console, shaking her head. One of these days, she was going to forget her own head.</p><p>The woman grabbed the sonic lipstick out of the small slot that was normally reserved for the Doctor’s screwdriver, and the TARDIS warbled happily, as Sarah Jane went to exit.</p><p>She pulled the door shut, the locking mechanism engaging by itself, as she turned around.</p><p>“Well, that was quick.” A redheaded woman wearing magenta clothes commented, a young boy standing next to her, looking Sarah Jane up and down.</p><p>Sarah Jane blinked. “Was it?” She commented. Maybe <em>that </em>was why the other versions of her, El, and Jack Harkness were standing on that hill. They’d been called in to do something, but they knew their past selves had shown up to deal with it, so they saw themselves off.</p><p>“It’s great that you came.” The other woman stated.</p><p>“Bit retro.” The boy looked around the outside of the TARDIS curiously. “What is it? Portable crime lab?”</p><p>“Oh, something like that.” Sarah Jane replied. The TARDIS was portable, if nothing else, and the Doctor was rather like a detective in some respects.</p><p>“Ambrose Northover.” The woman introduced herself, shaking Sarah Jane’s hand. “I was the one who called. I run the meals on wheels for the whole valley. This is my son, Elliot.”</p><p>“Hello.” Sarah Jane said to the boy.</p><p>“Where’s your uniform?” He questioned.</p><p>“Don’t be cheeky, Elliot.” Ambrose admonished him before Sarah Jane came up with an answer. “She’s plainclothes. CID, is it?” She asked of Sarah Jane. “Anyway, it’s over here.” She guided the woman over.</p><p>Sarah Jane stood there for a moment. “Okay. You’ve been doing this for years without the Doctor’s help, and the Doctor managed to survive without your help for… a few days. He’ll be fine.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Restricted access.” The Doctor read with narrowed eyes. “No unauthorized personnel… guess we’ll have to come back later.”</p><p>El looked like she was about to explode. “…do it.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed manically, flicking the sonic screwdriver open, and pointing it at the padlock at the metal gate. The bit of metal popped, sending out a small shower of sparks, before falling to the ground.</p><p>“Electronic padlocks.” The Doctor shook his head, putting the sonic away. “It’s like they were asking for me to break in.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah, yes.” Sarah Jane followed. “What is it that I’m investigating?”</p><p>Ambrose frowned. “You don’t know?”</p><p>“Oh, you know how it is.” Sarah Jane replied, “So much red tape, things get lost in the mix.”</p><p>Ambrose nodded, and took the lead over to an open, empty grave. “Well, it’s a family plot, see. My aunt Gladys died six years ago. Her husband, Alun, died a few weeks back. He lived in the house two doors down. Not many of us left up here now.”</p><p>“Mum,” Elliot rolled his eyes, “She doesn’t want to hear about that. She wants to hear about the bodies.”</p><p>“Yes. Sorry.” Ambrose apologized to Sarah. “Well, they always wanted to be buried in the same plot, together. But when we went to bury Uncle Alun, Gladys was… gone.”</p><p>Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “Gone?”</p><p>“Coffin, body, everything.” Ambrose elaborated.</p><p>Sarah Jane frowned, looking to the open, empty grave, bottom muddy from the rain.</p><p>“The thing is; the grave was untouched.” Ambrose continued. “No signs of it having been messed with.”</p><p>“Is it possible it could’ve happened just after she was buried?” Sarah Jane considered. That was a common tactic among corpse thieves, alien and otherwise. Wait for the mourners to leave, dig up the still disturbed soil, and then scarper, nobody the wiser until it was far, far too late.</p><p>“No.” Ambrose stated. “They’ve had cameras overlooking this place since 2012, if it happened back then, somebody would’ve noticed. The fact is, a grave that hasn’t been touched for six years is suddenly empty!”</p><p>“Interesting…” Sarah Jane looked in. Well, count her intrigued.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“What about now?” The Doctor questioned as he and El turned the corner into the facility. It didn’t look military, that was good, less shouty people with guns he had to deal with. “Do you feel it now?”</p><p>El shook her head. “No clue what you’re talking about.”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly stopped, looking around. “The ground doesn’t feel like it should.”</p><p>“It is the future.” El considered as they began walking again. “Maybe this is just how it feels?”</p><p>“El, the year 2020 is host to way too many events to count, but strange ground was never one of them.” A faint siren sounded as they walked. “Hear that? Drill in start-up mode. After-waves of a recent seismological shift and blue grass…” He put the substance in his mouth, before spitting it out. “Eugh.”</p><p>El frowned. “Gross.”</p><p>“Yeah, don’t really know where I picked up that habit. What’s,” He took the lead through a red door, “In here?”</p><p>The Doctor looked around a mechanical workshop, a woman standing at a computer at the other end.</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor said to the woman as he entered the room. “Hello!”</p><p>“Who are you?” The woman questioned. “What are you doing here? …and what are you wearing?”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at the Hawaiian patterned shirt and waved it away. “Dressed for Rio. Ministry of Drills, Earth, and science.” The Doctor flashed the psychic paper. “New ministry, quite big, just merged. There’s quite a lot of responsibility on our shoulders, don’t like to talk about it.” He followed the woman’s gaze to El and waved it away. “Bring your daughter to work day. What are you doing?”</p><p>“None of your business.” The woman evasively answered, going to a nearby contraption set up in a hole in the floor.</p><p>The Doctor looked at the woman’s screen and frowned. It was your standard seismograph, but… “Where are you getting these readings from?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“Under the soil.” She answered, putting away the device.</p><p>“The drill’s up and running again.” A man announced, entering the room. Catching sight of the Doctor and El, he immediately stopped. “What’s going on? Who are these people?”</p><p>“El, dad- the Doctor.” El amended.</p><p>The Doctor frowned as he crouched by the hole, feeling around at the soil inside. “Why’s there a big patch of earth in the middle of the floor?”</p><p>“We don’t know.” The woman answered. “It just appeared overnight.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened. Appearing overnight, seismograph readings like that… “Right, good.” He shot to his feet. “You all need to get out of here very fast.” He told them, moving to look at the scanner.</p><p>“Why?” The woman questioned.</p><p>“What’s your name?” The Doctor inquired as he began typing.</p><p>“Nasreen Chaudhry.” She answered.</p><p>“Look at your screens, Nasreen.” The Doctor pointed. “Look at these readings. It’s <em>moving</em>.”</p><p>“Hey!” The man barked, walking over to the Doctor. “That’s specialized equipment, get away from it.”</p><p>Nasreen looked to the Doctor. “What is?”</p><p>Nearby, unnoticed by all of them except El, the ground began to steam.</p><p>“Dad, the ground.” El looked down at the hole. “This isn’t good, is it?”</p><p>The Doctor turned around to look. “Shouldn’t think so, no. The it’s shifting when it shouldn’t be shifting.” He walked over to examine.</p><p>“What shouldn’t?” Nasreen demanded.</p><p>The lights began to flicker as the room began to quake, the people inside staggering.</p><p>“The ground, the soil, the earth.” The Doctor hurriedly explained. “It’s moving, but how, why!?”</p><p>The seismograph went wild as the quake intensified.</p><p>“Is it… earthquake?” El asked.</p><p>“Doubt it!” The Doctor replied, looking to the scanner. “’Cause it’s only happening under this room!”</p><p>Sections of the floor began to break apart, the people inside yelping, trying to get back from the steaming holes.</p><p>“It knows we’re here.” The Doctor stated. “It’s attacking us. The ground is attacking us!”</p><p>“No, no, no that’s not possible!” Nasreen replied.</p><p>“Under the circumstances,” The Doctor shot back, “I’d suggest… run!” He quickly ordered, the others dashing to the other side of the room quickly.</p><p>“Ah!” The other man grunted in pain, as his foot suddenly fell through the floor.</p><p>“Tony!” Nasreen shouted.</p><p>The Doctor turned, looking to the girl standing nearby. “Don’t get close, El! Stay away from the ground!”</p><p>El nodded, and turned to look at Tony, focusing her mind and her eyes. Her concentration was broken when, suddenly, the floor underneath her gave way as well. “Dad!”</p><p>The Doctor reacted quickly, sprinting over and diving to the floor. He took El’s hand, trying to pull her out.</p><p>“El, try to pull with your mind!” The Doctor ordered, as he put what little psychic force he could behind his pull.</p><p>“I’m trying!” El replied. “It’s not working! Don’t… don’t let go.” She requested, as Nasreen pulled Tony out of his predicament.</p><p>“Never.” The Time Lord replied.</p><p>“Dad…” El gulped. “What is it? Why’s it doing this?”</p><p>Well, the Doctor had some theories… none of them good. “Stay calm.” He told her instead. “Keep holding my hand. Don’t let go.” He turned to look at Tony and Nasreen. “Shut down that drill… <em>NOW!</em>” He bellowed when they took too long to go do as he instructed.</p><p>“Can you get me out?” El asked, breathing heavily. But, given that she was already trying to pull herself out with her powers, the Doctor was trying to pull from his side, and she was still stuck… the answer was likely to be no.</p><p>“El, stay calm.” The Doctor told her. “It’s like quicksand, struggling’s only going to make it worse. Keep holding my hand. I won’t let go of you.”</p><p>El yelped as her grip slipped free momentarily, the Doctor grabbing back on. “Dad!”</p><p>“Stay calm!” The Doctor said, more to himself than her. “They’ll shut down the drill, they can…” He grunted, struggling to hold on. “Hold on!”</p><p>“I can’t!” El howled, as it felt like the downward pulling of the earth and the Doctor’s grip was beginning to stretch her out. “Dad… find me.”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>He realized too late exactly what she meant when she let go on her own.</p><p>“El, no!” The Doctor shouted, as the girl closed her eyes, face disappearing under the dirt. “No, no!” He tried to pull her back out, only brushing against her fingers. “No, no, no!” He pounded on the ground, getting to his feet as the quaking finally stopped, far too late.</p><p>The Doctor soniced the ground, trying to stimulate it to push El back up… to no avail.</p><p>Nasreen and Tony came running in, looking at the ground in shock.</p><p>“Where is she?” Nasreen questioned.</p><p>“She’s gone…” The Doctor replied. “The ground took her.” In a microsecond, however, the Doctor switched from despondent to angry. He was going to get her back…</p><p>Even if he had to rip apart the planet to do it.</p>
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<a name="section0038"><h2>38. The Invasion of Cwmtaff</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sarah Jane frowned as she felt around on the inside of the empty grave. Everything was normal, the scanner watch wasn’t detecting anything.</p><p>For some reason, the body was just… gone.</p><p>“Sugar?” Elliot suddenly asked, looking down into the grave from above.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked up inquisitively.</p><p>“In your tea.” The boy elaborated.</p><p>“Oh, yes, thank you.” Sarah Jane kindly replied.</p><p>The boy nodded, and turned to go, before he frowned, seemingly considering something. “There’s only one explanation as far as I can see.”</p><p>“Oh?” Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow obligingly. “What’s that?”</p><p>“The graves eat people.” Elliot said. “Devour people whole. Leaving no trace.”</p><p>“And what makes you think that?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“They didn’t get in from above,” Elliot replied, “They couldn’t have gotten in from the sides… Only other place is underneath.”</p><p>“Underneath.” Sarah Jane had already considered that, but it’d take some serious digging equipment. The cost would far outweigh the potential benefit for any body thieves.</p><p>Elliot shrugged. “Once you’ve eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”</p><p>“Sherlock Holmes.” Sarah Jane looked back around the inside of the grave.</p><p>“Know it?” Elliot asked.</p><p>“Know <em>him.</em>” Sarah Jane corrected. “Don’t let Sir Conan Doyle’s portrayal fool you, the real man’s a right blithering idiot. On a good day.”</p><p>“Sherlock Holmes is fictional.” Elliot tried to refute.</p><p>“Well, the name maybe. But there are about three or four people he took inspiration from.” Sarah Jane replied. “One was a man named Henry Gordon Jago, another was a woman named Vastra… But the main one, the one Conan Doyle took most of it from, was a friend of mine.”</p><p>“No way,” Elliot shook his head, “You’re not that old.”</p><p>“I’m not.” Sarah Jane conceded. “But <em>he </em>is.” The woman paused for thought, suddenly considering something. “Come to think of it, his daughter was probably the inspiration for Enola Holmes too.”</p><p>Elliot looked ready to debate her on that. “Enola Holmes was Sherlock’s <em>sister</em>. And not canon."</p><p>"Is too." Sarah Jane argued.</p><p>“Conan Doyle didn’t write it, so it’s not canon.” Elliot replied.</p><p>Sarah Jane chuckled quietly. Come to think of it, what were the Doctor and El doing?</p><hr/><p>“Is that what happened to Mo?” Tony questioned, looking to the patch of soil that had pulled El down. “Are they dead?”</p><p>“They had better not be.” The Doctor growled, pacing back and forth. “It’s not just quicksand. It wanted her, it pulled her in, and once it had her, it stopped.”</p><p>“The ground wanted her?” Nasreen incredulously questioned.</p><p>“The ground, something in control of the ground.” The Doctor replied. “You said earlier, the soil was dormant this morning… when the drill was stopped. You turned it back on, the ground, or whatever’s controlling it, became active again.”</p><p>“So, what, the <em>ground </em>wants us to stop drilling?” Nasreen demanded.</p><p>“You never listen, do you? You…” The Doctor shook with fury. <em>“STUPID APES!”</em></p><p>“Excuse me!?” Nasreen recoiled.</p><p>“I keep saying, but you’re not listening!” The Doctor hissed. “Something’s down there, controlling the ground. It’s bio-programming, excitation of the organic molecules in the soil to make it behave in certain ways. But there’s something else that’s important; why are you lot drilling here?”</p><p>“Drilling?” Nasreen questioned.</p><p>“The ground’s only attacking because of that damn drill, so <em>why </em>are you here!?” The Doctor demanded. “Wait!” He held up a finger. “Hold that thought.” He fell to the floor, pressing an ear to it. “You said you stopped the drill, yes?”</p><p>“Yes.” Nasreen confirmed.</p><p>“So, why can I still here drilling?” The Doctor asked, glancing back, before shooting to his feet. “Whatever you disturbed down there is on its way up here. The same thing that caused the ground to attack. Now,” He snapped his fingers, pointing, “Big drill, why?”</p><p>“We’re geologists.” Tony answered.</p><p>“Geologist, so, it’s a ‘doing it because we can’ sort of thing.” The Doctor recognized. “But why Wales?” He asked, going over to the laptop computers nearby.</p><p>“Hang on, what are you going?” Nasreen demanded as the Doctor soniced his way into the laptops’ systems.</p><p>“Uniting all the sensor data you’ve recorded.” The Doctor answered, as the screen changed to show the drill’s borehole. “21.009 miles!? I thought after the disaster that was the Inferno Project, drilling past twenty was outlawed.”</p><p>Back during his exile on Earth, a deep drilling project called the Inferno Project tried drilling deeper into the earth to access a newly discovered natural gas. Unbeknownst to the people in charge, however, the gas was being generated by a primordial ooze. When the Inferno Project hit the ooze, it seeped back to the surface, and began transforming humans on the surface into feral, mutant creatures. During that time, the Doctor had been trying to repair the TARDIS himself, accidentally ending up on an Earth where the Inferno Project was much farther ahead.</p><p>When the Doctor arrived on that other Earth, he’d tried to get the project shut down… to no avail. The drill hit a pocket of the ooze and ignited it. Which ignited the next pocket, and the next and the next… Before long, the surface of Earth was totally uninhabitable for human life. The Doctor managed to get back home and shut down the Inferno Project there, but his failure to save the other earth weighed on him for quite some time.</p><p>Come to think of it… maybe that was the alternate earth that the portal from Hawkins led to. It would certainly explain why there was no human life, and time seemed to be stopped in the late 70s to early 80s. It would certainly be a funny coincidence.</p><p>“We received special permission to drill.” Nasreen explained. “We found patches of grass on this site, containing trace elements that haven’t been seen for… twenty million years.”</p><p>“The blue grass?” The Doctor replied, earning a confirming nod from the woman. “Oh, Nasreen.” The Doctor patted her on the shoulder. “Those patches weren’t ‘x marks the spot,’ they were a warning. ‘Stay away.’ Because I’ve already told you, while you’ve been drilling down…” The Doctor suddenly pointed to the laptop screen, showing three red dots moving towards the surface. “Someone’s been drilling up.”</p><p>“Good God.” Tony breathed, looking at the dot moving up. “Whatever that is it’s moving fast.”</p><p>“How many people live nearby?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>“Just my daughter and her family.” Tony answered. “The rest of the staff travels in.”</p><p>The Doctor clapped his hands, pointing at the laptops. “Grab that equipment and come on.”</p><p>“Hang on,” Nasreen said, “What are we doing?”</p><p>The Doctor sighed, turning around. “That noise isn’t drilling. It’s transports. Three of them. Moving upward at a speed of 150 kilometers per hour, that gives us about…” He checked his watch, counting his fingers. “Twelve minutes.” He shut one of the laptops, taking it. “Whatever used the bio-programming on the earth is on its way up, now!”</p><hr/><p>“How can something be coming up when its only the earth’s crust down there!?” Tony questioned, he and Nasreen running behind the Doctor.</p><p>“You saw the readings!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Who are you anyway?” Nasreen questioned. “How can you know all this?”</p><p>The air suddenly whooshed, wind blowing as air particles were displaced, a red field of electricity appearing into the sky.</p><p>“Whoa…” Nasreen temporarily stopped, looking up. “Do you see that?”</p><p>“No, no, no!” The Doctor frustratedly shouted. He ran up to the top of a nearby hill, grabbing a bit of gravel, before placing it in a slingshot he’d produced from his pockets, firing the rock straight up. The field crackled as the rock bounced off, landing harmlessly.</p><p>The Doctor took the sonic screwdriver, pointing it up as he held down the button. “Energy field originating from inside the earth!”</p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane suddenly approached from down a short road, being followed by Elliot and Ambrose. “Something odd’s happening here. People inside the graves are just disappearing.”</p><p>“Hold on a tick!” The Doctor replied to the woman. “Particle membrane.” He recognized the red dome of electricity surrounding the area. “We can’t get out, nothing from the outside can get in.”</p><p>“Okay,” Sarah Jane stated, “What about the TARDIS.”</p><p>Nasreen cocked her head. “The <em>what?”</em></p><p>“No, those energy patterns would play havoc on the circuits.” The Doctor answered. “With a bit of time, maybe, but we’ve only got,” He checked his watch, “Nine and a half minutes.”</p><p>Sarah Jane held up a finger. “Until what?”</p><p>“We’re trapped in here.” Nasreen quickly explained. “And something’s burrowing to the surface.”</p><p>“Typical trouble.” Sarah Jane commented. She suddenly frowned, looking around. “Where’s El?”</p><p>“Sorry?” Elliot tilted his head.</p><p>“Different El.” Sarah Jane replied, before turning to the Doctor. “Where is she?”</p><p>“…gone.” The Doctor answered. “But we’re going to get her back. Get everyone inside the church.” He ordered, running into the building.</p><p>“Back?” Sarah Jane questioned.</p><p>“The floor tore open and the ground pulled her in!” The Doctor replied, as they marched toward the building.</p><p>“The graves!” Sarah Jane suddenly pointed.</p><p>“Sarah, we don’t-“ The Doctor began.</p><p>“Doctor, listen!” Sarah Jane ordered. “Bodies have been disappearing from the cemetery, the graves totally undisturbed from all sides! The only way the bodies could’ve been stolen is from-“</p><p>“The bottom.” The Doctor finished. “And whoever’s stolen the bodies, taken El… they’re on their way up now.”</p><hr/><p>“So we can’t get out,” Ambrose recited, “We can’t contact anyone, and the same thing that’s taken my husband, has taken your daughter, and it’s on it’s way up here?”</p><p>“Well, yes.” The Doctor answered. “But, if we move quickly enough, we can be ready.”</p><p>“No.” Ambrose pointed. “<em>This</em> has gone on long enough. I mean, what is this?”</p><p>“No, you stop!” The Doctor snapped back. “I lost my daughter to that thing as well, so <em>don’t </em>patronize me!”</p><p>Ambrose recoiled slightly.</p><p>“Can you get my dad back?” Elliot suddenly asked.</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor answered, turning to him as well. “But I need you all to trust me.” He looked to Ambrose.</p><p>“So tell us what to do.” The woman stated.</p><p>“Thank you.” The Doctor spun around. “Okay, we’ve got eight minutes to set up a line of defense. Bring me every camera, every phone, every piece of recording equipment you can get your hands on, chop chop.”</p><hr/><p>“Every motion sensor, every light!” The Doctor ordered, helping Sarah Jane and Ambrose wire up the outside of the church. “Every square inch of the outside needs to be covered!”</p><p>The two nodded, wiring up cameras. They also wired up the motion sensors, and a series of lights to activate where the sensors would be set off.</p><hr/><p>“Alright!” The Doctor strode into the church again. “I need a map of the village where the cameras are going!”</p><p>“I-I can’t do the words.” Elliot stammered. “I’m dyslexic.”</p><p>“That’s okay, my daughter’s twelve years old and she’s still reading at a pre-k level.” The Doctor replied. “Just draw. Draw like your life depends on it Elliot.”</p><p>The boy nodded, and ran off to do just that.</p><p>“Six minutes forty.” Tony informed, as the Doctor began wiring up some electronics.</p><p>For the next three minutes, the group of people hurriedly worked. There was a little hiccup when the Doctor had to stop Ambrose from passing out guns, but other than that, it went smoothly.</p><p>The clock hit three minutes as Elliot came back, holding the map.</p><p>“Hey hey!” The Doctor looked at the map approvingly. “See? Dyslexia never stopped da Vinci or Einstein!”</p><p>“I still don’t understand what you’re going to do.” Elliot admitted.</p><p>“Two-phase plan.” The Doctor replied. “First, the sensors and cameras tell us when something arrives.” He tapped the screen. “Second, I use this,” He held up the sonic screwdriver, “To send a sonic pulse through that network of devices temporarily incapacitating whatever the culprit is.”</p><p>“Knock ‘em out… Cool.” The boy commented. He swallowed, looking to the Doctor. “Is it monsters coming?”</p><p>The Doctor turned to the boy. “Yeah.”</p><p>“Scared of them?” Elliot asked.</p><p>“No.” The Doctor instantly denied. “They’re scared of me.”</p><p>“…will you really get my dad back?” Elliot asked.</p><p>“No question.” The Time Lord replied.</p><p>Elliot slowly nodded. “I left my headphones at home.”</p><p>The Doctor jerked his thumb quickly, the boy running off, before he turned to the timer.</p><p>One minute left.</p><hr/><p>“How are we doing?” The Doctor asked, running outside to Sarah Jane.</p><p>The woman looked up, dark splotches covering the dome. “It’s getting dark.”</p><p>“They’re increasing the field density, preventing exterior photons from penetrating the shield.” The Doctor explained, as the area darkened like night had fallen. “Isolating us in the dark, which means…” The ground began to rumble. “It’s here.” He turned to Sarah Jane. “Come on! In!” He shouted, running over to the church’s entrance.</p><p>“I can’t get it to open.” Ambrose grunted, trying to push the door open. “It keeps sticking, the wood’s warped!”</p><p>“Right, one three. One, two, three!” The Doctor, Ambrose, and Sarah Jane rammed the door, sending it open, allowing them inside the church. The Time Lord slammed the door shut behind them and hopped over to the laptop. “See if we can get a fix!”</p><p>The Doctor furiously typed at the controls, objects all over the room falling as the area quaked, before the equipment suddenly sparked, and the power died.</p><p>The room went deathly still, before Tony went over to the wall, trying to get the power working again.</p><p>“No power.” He reported.</p><p>“It’s deliberate.” The Doctor responded, rushing around the dead technology.</p><p>“Well, what do we do?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“Nothing!” The Doctor frustratedly threw his hands in the air. “We’ve got nothing! They sent an energy surge to wreck our systems.</p><p>The ground began to rumble, the entire church shaking.</p><p>“Doctor…?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>The Time Lord crouched, feeling the ground, as the quaking let up. “It’s here…”</p><p>Ambrose suddenly inhaled, looking around anxiously. “Where’s Elliot!? Has anyone seen Elliot!? Who counted him last, who saw him in?”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes widened. “…I did.”</p><p>“What!?” Ambrose turned to him.</p><p>“He said he was going to get his headphones.”</p><p>“And you let him go!?” Ambrose demanded. “He’s out there on his own!”</p><p>“Mum!” Elliot suddenly banged on the door from outside. “Grandpa Tony! Let me in!”</p><p>The group rushed over, working to pull the piece of old, warped wood open, freezing.</p><p>Elliot wasn’t there.</p><p>“Where is he!?” Ambrose sprinted out first. “He was here… he was here! Elliot!” She took off across the graveyard.</p><p>“Ambrose, don’t go running off!” The Doctor shouted.</p><p>“Ambrose!” Tony took off after her.</p><p>The remaining three stood there on the top of the hill, looking around, before the Doctor could hear Ambrose howl.</p><p>The Doctor broke into a sprint, running down the graveyard. “What happened!?”</p><p>“My dad’s hurt!” Ambrose answered, as the Doctor caught up.</p><p>The Doctor quickly looked over the man, who was holding a hand up to his neck, rocking back and forth in pain. “Get him into the church, now!”</p><p>“Elliot’s gone!” Ambrose looked to the Doctor. “They’ve killed him, haven’t they?”</p><p>“I don’t think so.” The Doctor replied. “They’ve taken three others when they could’ve just killed them up here. There’s still hope, Ambrose, there’s always hope.”</p><p>“Then why have they taken him?” Ambrose cried.</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Time Lord admitted. “But I’m going to find out. But first, I’ve got to stop this attack. <em>Please, </em>get inside the church.”</p><p>Ambrose nodded, helping Tony up towards the old building.</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane turned to the Doctor, “What now?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0039"><h2>39. The Silurians</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor took a step onto the road, placing a pair of sunglasses on his face, despite it being pitch black outside. Of course, these were no ordinary sunglasses.</p><p>Sonic specs, the latest in wearable buzzing technology. Capable of performing all the functions of the sonic screwdriver, and then some. The Doctor still preferred the screwdriver, of course, it just felt better to hold something in the hands and use, but he needed the specs at the moment.</p><p>The Doctor looked down at his hand, viewing it in an orange glow, before giving a satisfied nod. That was the heat-vision working then. The Time Lord began nonchalantly walking, shoving his hands into his pockets.</p><p>He followed the sound of rustling leaves, out in front of a house, looking on. A figure retreated into the plants, unglowing.</p><p>“Cold blood…” The Doctor remarked to himself. “I know who you are…”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor whistled loudly, trying to draw as much attention to himself as possible, patting the outer paneling of the meals on wheels truck.</p><p>He reached into the driver’s seat, grabbing a fire extinguisher. Cold blood meant it was going to be easier to take it down with heat-based traps.</p><p>Something snarled from behind, and the Doctor stiffened.</p><p>The Doctor peered into the window, seeing a humanoid figure with green scales in what looked like ancient armor running up to the Doctor. At the last possible second, the Time Lord stepped out of the way, the lizard person slamming into the vehicle.</p><p>The Doctor began spraying the lizard person down with the fire extinguisher, corralling it to the back of the transport van. The two doors on the back suddenly opened, and Sarah Jane jumped out, grabbing onto one side of the humanoid, while the Doctor grabbed the other, and both shoved the alien into the back.</p><p>The Doctor tapped the side of the sonic specs, and they buzzed, the van locking.</p><p>“We got it…” Sarah Jane breathed.</p><p>“Defending the planet with meals on wheels.” The Doctor remarked with a smile.</p><p>The two suddenly jumped as rumbling, rather like thunder, echoed throughout the valley, shaking the ground.</p><p>“What was that?” Sarah Jane looked up.</p><p>“The others are leaving…” The Doctor bit his lower lip, as the dome began to fade, natural daylight returning.</p><p>“Did we scare them away?” Sarah Jane considered, turning to the Doctor.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor replied, staring into the distance. “Now both sides have hostages.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El’s eyes shot open, and she glanced around. The last thing she remembered was being… sucked into the ground. Odd thing was, despite being pulled through the dirt, she looked to be completely clean.</p><p>Her vision returned fully, and she took a breath, as a half-transparent barrier kept her cut off from the outside.</p><p>Her breathing began to speed up. What did the Doctor call it? Claustrophobia? Okay, it was okay… she just had to relax. She could get out of this.</p><p>El took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, sending a mental fist pounding against the glass.</p><p>It gave way, a little spiderweb of cracks appearing.</p><p>El took another breath, and was prepared to lash out at it again, when something stood over the outside of the little box she was being kept in.</p><p>The figure, with the green, scaly face covered by a mask, made a shushing motion.</p><p>“Did you just-!?” El cut herself off, as a thick mist filled the air. “Oh no.”</p><p>El raised a fist again, but given that she was still only a child, and she was panicking quite severely, the gas took hold of her quickly, and she fell unconscious.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So, Sarah Jane,” The Doctor walked down the pathway on the side of the church to the bottom, where the woman was standing guard. “You’ve been kept up with UNIT files since the old days, whaddya know about the Silurians?”</p><p>Sarah Jane blinked in surprise, straightening out. “The ones who tried releasing a plague to destroy humanity?”</p><p>“Yepo.” The Doctor replied, pushing the basement door open. “Let’s go see if this one’s thawed out.”</p><p>“Are you sure you want to do this?” Sarah Jane questioned, as they stood at the entrance. “By yourself?”</p><p>The Silurian woman, now that they had gotten a good look at her, sat on the floor at the other end, handcuffed. She took deep, rattling breaths, glaring at the Doctor.</p><p>“Very sure.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Doctor, Tony got <em>stinged.</em>” Sarah Jane reminded him.</p><p>“Venom gland takes 24 hours to refill.” The Doctor explained. “Isn’t that right?” He directed to their involuntary guest.</p><p>The Silurian hissed in response.</p><p>The Doctor turned to Sarah Jane. “You know me, I know what I’m doing.”</p><p>“Debatable.” Sarah Jane replied. “Most days, you just bumble in, hope things work out, and pretend that was the plan all along.”</p><p>“It’s worked for the past nine-hundred years, no reason it should stop now.” The Doctor shot back. “Get upstairs, try to keep that lot focused <em>off </em>the fact that there’s a lizard woman from the dawn of time underneath them.”</p><p>Sarah Jane nodded, and went to do so.</p><p>The Doctor turned to the Silurian, dusting his hands.</p><p>The Silurian leaned forward, grey mask locked in a permanent frown and glare.</p><p>“I’m the Doctor.” The Time Lord introduced himself, slowly approaching while keeping his hands displayed. “I’ve come to talk. I’m going to remove your mask.” He informed the Silurian woman long before he took the action.</p><p>The Doctor gently felt for the edge of the mask, and gingerly pulled it off.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor looked at the Silurian woman’s face, even if she was glowering at him, with a look of awe. “You are <em>beautiful.</em>” Tactic number one, calm them down by saying something so unexpected, they could only be confused. In the Doctor’s defense, the Silurian really was a very… attractive woman, even for a non-Gallifreyan. Then again, his second wife was a bit green and scaly as well, so maybe it was just nostalgia.</p><p>“The remnant of a bygone age on planet Earth.” The Doctor smiled. “And by the way, lovely mode of travel.” He complimented, another tactic to try and make her cooperative. “Geothermal currents projecting you up through a network of tunnels.” He did a little chef’s kiss. “Gorgeous! May I sit?” He didn’t really wait for a reply, before pulling up a chair to lounge in.</p><p>“Now,” The Doctor threw one leg over the other. “Your people have taken my daughter. I want her back. <em>Now.</em>”</p><p>The Silurian said nothing, choosing to continue to glare instead.</p><p>“Why did you come to the surface?” The Doctor questioned instead. “What do you want?”</p><p>She just kept sitting there, staring.</p><p>“Oh, I do hate a monologue.” The Doctor said. “Come on, give us an answer. How many are you?”</p><p>“…I am the last of my species.” She replied.</p><p>The Doctor scoffed. “The Klempari Defense, oldest trick in the book. No, <em>I’m </em>the last of my species, and I know how that sits in a heart.” The Time Lord glared at her. “So don’t insult me… Let’s start again. Tell me your name.” The Doctor requested.</p><p>“Alaya.” She finally answered.</p><p>“Oh, I like that, lovely name, Alaya.” The Doctor remarked. “How long has your tribe been sleeping under the earth?”</p><p>Alaya tilted her head.</p><p>“It’s not that difficult to work out.” The Time Lord told her. “You’re 300 million years out of your comfort zone. Question is; what woke you now?”</p><p>“We were attacked.” Alaya hissed.</p><p>“Attacked?” The Doctor repeated, eyebrows going into his hair. “No, no, that wasn’t an attack. It was a drill.”</p><p>“Our sensors detected a threat to our life support systems.” Alaya replied. “The warrior class was activated to prevent the assault. We will wipe the vermin from the surface and reclaim our planet.”</p><p>“Do we have to say ‘vermin?’” The Doctor asked. “They’re really, very nice.”</p><p>“They’re primitive apes.” Alaya shot back.</p><p>“Extraordinary species.” The Doctor retorted, ignoring that, just earlier in the day, he’d called a few of them stupid apes. “You attack them, and they will fight back. But,” He hit his hand on his leg, “There’s a peace to be brokered here. I can help you with that.”</p><p>“This land is <em>ours.</em>” Alaya snarled. “We were living here long before the apes!”</p><p>“Doesn’t give you automatic rights to it now, I’m afraid.” The Doctor retorted. “Actually, going by that logic, <em>I’m </em>the only one who has any right to this planet. It formed around Racnoss starship. I’m rambling. Point is, they’re not going to just give it up.”</p><p>“Then we will destroy them.” Alaya resolved.</p><p>“You underestimate them.” The Doctor clasped his hands.</p><p>“You underestimate us!” Alaya retorted.</p><p>“One tribe of homo reptilia against six <em>billion </em>humans?” The Doctor questioned back. “You’ve got your work cut out for you then.”</p><p>“We did not initiate combat.” Alaya stood tall. “But we will still win! Earth is <em>weak</em>. The apes are destroying themselves for us as we speak!”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “Oh, right, 2020. Last thing this year needs, attack of the Silurians. But never mind that…” The Doctor leaned forward, glaring. “Give me back my daughter. Give us back <em>everyone </em>you’ve taken.”</p><p>Alaya responded with a taunting smile. “No.”</p><p>A few tense moments of silence passed. The Doctor drew a breath, standing up. “I’m not going to let you provoke a war, Alaya.” He put the chair away. “There will be no battle here today.”</p><p>“The fire of war is already lit.” The Silurian retorted. “A massacre is due.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to her. “Not while I’m here.” Not a threat, not a promise…</p><p>An objective <em>fact</em>.</p><p>“I will die for my cause.” Alaya stated. “What will you do for yours?”</p><p>The Doctor had just a short smile in response. She had no idea.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Sorry,” Sarah Jane held up a finger, “What?”</p><p>“I’m going to go down, below the surface,” The Doctor outlined, “To find the rest of the tribe, and talk to them.”</p><p>“You’re going to <em>negotiate</em> with these aliens?” Ambrose demanded.</p><p>“They’re not aliens.” The Doctor retorted. “They’re Terrans.”</p><p>Sarah Jane frowned. “I thought Terran meant human.”</p><p>“Not strictly.” The Doctor replied. “’Terran’ is just a fancy way of saying ‘any sort of sapient life that hails from Earth.’ They’re people, just like you lot.” He looked around at the humans surrounding them. “Some good, some bad, some in-between.”</p><p>“But what are they doing so far down in the Earth’s crust?” Nasreen inquired.</p><p>“Ah, interesting story.” The Doctor clapped his hands. “See, a long, long, <em>long</em> time ago, the Silurians lived up here, like you lot. Building cities, making history, domesticating dinosaurs… Until,” The Time Lord held up a finger. “The Silurian scientists detected an unknown object entering the solar system, on a direct collision course for Earth.”</p><p>“The asteroid.” Nasreen breathed. “The one that killed the dinosaurs.”</p><p>“No, actually.” The Doctor replied. “This object was much, much, much bigger. Big enough that when it hit Earth, there would be absolutely <em>zero </em>chance anything on the surface could survive. So, when the first little wave of debris from the big object started landing, they went underground to wait out the catastrophe, setting things up so that when things returned to some semblance of stability, they’d be woken up.”</p><p>“So,” Tony rubbed his face, “Why’d it take until we drilled into them?”</p><p>“Ah, well, the Silurians were clever planners, rubbish designers.” The Doctor replied. “They keyed the systems to record the sudden spike of geological activity, wait for the spike to go down, and <em>then </em>wake them up. But, the thing is, after the wave of little meteors, the big one never hit.”</p><p>“Never hit?” Sarah Jane repeated.</p><p>“No.” The Doctor confirmed. “Because their scientists had gotten their calculations just a little bit off. Instead of the object smashing into Earth, it was captured… and became the moon.”</p><p>“…the moon?” Ambrose repeated.</p><p>“Yep!” The Doctor pointed up. “The great big silvery thing in the sky! And the Silurians slept, never to be awoken… Until you lot started doing things like tapping oil wells, deep-sea excavation, and digging subway tunnels. Your drill was one of those. Threatening their settlement. Now, the creature in the crypt,” He pointed down. “Her name’s Alaya. She’s one of their warriors, and she’s my bargaining chip. I need her alive. If she lives, so does Elliot, and Mo, and El. My El. Because I <em>will </em>find them.” The Time Lord turned to each one of them gravely. “While I’m gone, you four people, in this church, in this corner of planet Earth, you have to be the best of humanity.”</p><p>“And what if they come back?” Tony questioned. “Shouldn’t we be examining this creature, dissecting it, finding its weak points?”</p><p>“No dissection! No examining!” The Doctor pointed. “We return their hostage, they return our family members. But harm a <em>scale </em>on that woman’s body, and any hope we have on getting ours back evaporates. We can land this, together… if you are the <em>best </em>you can be.” The Doctor looked between them. “You are decent, brilliant people. Nobody dies today. Understand?”</p><p>Nasreen suddenly began clapping, like she expected the room to burst into applause, before she abruptly stopped, with a sheepish smile.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor was striding up to the TARDIS, key at the ready, before he heard more footsteps trying to catch up to him. The Time Lord looked behind him and rushed over to the door.</p><p>“No, sorry, no!” The Doctor blocked the door before Nasreen could enter. “What do you think you’re doing?”</p><p>“Coming with you, of course!” Nasreen replied. “What is it? Some kind of transport pod?”</p><p>“Sort of, but you’re not,” The Doctor turned to look as Tony began approaching as well, “Coming with me.”</p><p>“He’s right,” Tony huffed. “You’re not.”</p><p>“I have spent my entire life excavating the layers of this planet.” Nasreen refuted. “And now you want me to stand back while you head down into it? I don’t think so!”</p><p>“We don’t have time to argue!” The Doctor stated.</p><p>“I thought we were in a rush.” Nasreen replied.</p><p>“It’ll be dangerous.” The Time Lord informed.</p><p>The woman shrugged. “So’s crossing the road.”</p><p>“Oh, for goodness sake…” The Doctor kicked the door open. “Come on!” He ordered, stepping inside to allow Nasreen in. “Welcome aboard the TARDIS. Now, don’t touch anything.” The Doctor pulled down the wibbly lever, the time machine letting out a mechanical warble in response. “Very precious.”</p><p>“No way!” Nasreen breathed, walking up onto the platform. “But that’s… this is… Fantastic!”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled as he began setting the controls.</p><p>“What does it do?” Nasreen asked.</p><p>“Everything.” The Doctor replied. “I’m hoping, that since we’re going down and not out, that the electrical membrane of that barrier won’t interfere.”</p><p>The entire TARDIS suddenly shook, being rocked from side to side.</p><p>“Did you touch anything!?” The Doctor demanded in a panic, holding onto the console.</p><p>“No!” Nasreen replied. “Isn’t this just what it does!?”</p><p>“I’m not doing anything!” The Doctor outlined as he ran around the console. “We’ve been hijacked! They must’ve detected the electromagnetic field caused by the pre-flight checks!” He looked to the viewport near the doors. “We’re being pulled through the earth! Whoa!” The Doctor and Nasreen fell to the floor as the TARDIS unexpectedly settled and stilled.</p><p>“Ow…” The Doctor groaned, getting to his feet before helping Nasreen up.</p><p>“Where are we?” Nasreen asked.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor suddenly smiled. “You are going to like this.”</p><p>The Time Lord ran over to the doors first, flinging them open, before stepping out. The TARDIS had been deposited into a cave, residual dirt still falling in bits from the ceiling. Nasreen let out a little surprised huff, but looked around, intrigued.</p><p>The Doctor looked up and whistled at the hole in the ceiling. “Looks like we broke through the bottom of their tunnel network. Don’t suppose it was designed to handle the TARDIS.”</p><p>“How far down <em>are </em>we?” Nasreen inquired.</p><p>“A lot farther down than twenty-one kilometers.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“Then why aren’t we burning alive?” Nasreen posed.</p><p>“Climate control.” The Doctor simply replied. “The Silurians are cold blooded, but even they can’t handle the temperatures common this far down.” He waved her along, taking the lead. “We’re looking for a small tribe of homo reptilia. Maybe a settlement of a dozen or so.”</p><p>“One <em>small</em> tribe?” Nasreen asked, suddenly hanging back.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor turned around to go where she had stopped.</p><p>“Maybe a dozen?” The woman repeated, looking out over from an observation platform.</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor gulped, looking at the cityscape carved out of the subterranean rock. “I said a dozen… that might be low-balling it.”</p><p>------------</p><p>El inhaled, forcing her eyes open. Trying to move one of her arms, the girl was stopped when it hit a cuff.</p><p>“No…” El struggled against the bindings. “No!”</p><p>“Hey,” A man next to her, in a similar examination rig with a long scar running down his chest, looked over to her, whispering. “Don’t worry, kid, we’ll be fine. Just keep silent and close your eyes.”</p><p>“What?” El asked.</p><p>The man looked over into the distance, paling. “Here he comes.”</p><p>El followed the man’s eyes and paled herself, at the green, scaled person, wearing scrubs and a facemask. The being leaned in to begin its examination, and El began struggling again.</p><p>Just like the lab, all over again.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0040"><h2>40. Journey to the Centre of the Earth.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“This place is enormous,” The Doctor looked around curiously, as he and Nasreen walked down a long catwalk suspended above the magma, branching off in all sorts of different directions. “And abandoned. The majority of the Silurians are probably still asleep.” He flicked the screwdriver open, scanning the area. “We need to find El, looking for heat signature anomalies.” At the same time, the Doctor sent out some mental probes. If El was conscious, she should be able to reply, no problem.</p><p>“B-But Doctor,” Nasreen stammered, “How can all this be here? I mean, these plants!” The woman looked to the prehistorical ancestor of a palm tree, as they turned the corner into a small tunnel.</p><p>“Most of them have been genetically engineered to be thermosynthetic.” The Doctor answered. “Utilizing heat as a food source. We should be getting close to the center of the city, now. Plant density is higher near the gathering spots to make sure the air doesn’t run out.”</p><p>Nasreen raised an eyebrow. “You’re sure this is the best way to enter?”</p><p>“Front door approach, definitely!” The Doctor replied as they came into an area made of what looked like polished marble, some of it almost reminiscent of ancient Greek architecture. “They’ve got external sensors to protect against attack, but they were unified as a species before the cataclysm.” The Doctor explained. “No reason for internal sensors.”</p><p>Suddenly, an alarm began to sound. <em>“Hostile life force detected in area 17.”</em> An automated female voice announced.</p><p>Doors at the end of the room slid open, a team of Silurian warriors came marching in, pointing weapons at the two.</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor’s hands instantly shot up. “No weapons, we come here as peaceful envoys of the surface world!”</p><p>The warrior at the front raised her weapon, spraying out a cloud of gas at the two.</p><p>The Doctor and Nasreen began to cough, the woman falling, as the Doctor began to feel his lungs fill with the substance.</p><p><em>‘Too much, too fast…’ </em>The Doctor struggled to think. <em>‘Respiratory bypass overwhelmed… El, if you can hear me…’ </em>The Doctor’s eyes drooped shut, and he fell to the floor.</p><p>-------------</p><p>El’s breathing rapidly sped up as the Silurian scientist began to advance on her, holding an instrument the size of a sonic screwdriver, with a spike on the end.</p><p>She’d received the Doctor’s message, loud and clear, she had to find him, fast.</p><p>“Decontamination complete.” The scientist spoke into a dictation device. “Proceeding with examination.”</p><p>Mo turned away, faced with the prospect of watching a kid be torn open in front of him. Turns out, it was unnecessary.</p><p>El’s eyes narrowed, and she reached out with her mind, snatching the instrument out of the scientist’s hand, holding it where he couldn’t reach. She might’ve lashed out at him, run the device through his neck… but what would the Doctor think? This wasn’t a Vampire holding a rapier, but a scientist who likely couldn’t understand her even if she understood him.</p><p>The scientist stopped, looking between the girl, and the floating medical instrument. “Interesting…” He commented.</p><p>A klaxon began to sound.</p><p><em>“Area 17 incursion, species diagnostic requested.” </em>A male voice announced over the loudspeaker.</p><p>The scientist gasped at the alert, before running off to attend to it.</p><p>“Yeah… stay away.” El dropped the scalpel and focused her mind on breaking the restraints. She stumbled onto the ground first, before turning her attention to Mo, breaking the man’s bindings as well.</p><p>The Welshman rubbed his wrists, staring at the girl in awe. “How…?”</p><p>El shrugged. “Later. Let’s go.”</p><p>---------------</p><p>“What do you think that was?” Mo asked, rattling off at a thousand miles per hour as he and the girl skulked through the Silurian compound. “Was it an alien? Is Earth being invaded again!?”</p><p>El glanced at him. “Don’t know. But maybe…” The Doctor could send messages to her telepathically, maybe she could do the same with her powers. She closed her eyes for a moment, and sent a little ping, like she gently tapping his arm.</p><p>The Doctor responded, but it was… faint. No, not faint, clouded. Like he was asleep and his subconscious was responded. Still, it was contact.</p><p>The Doctor initially registered the contact with extreme joy and relief.</p><p>El sent an inquiry about the situation.</p><p>What little mental processes of the Doctor that still remained active replied.</p><p>El sent him a thankful response.</p><p>The Doctor replied with the mental equivalent of a smile and went dark again.</p><p>El opened her eyes, looking to Mo. “Silurians. Lizard people. Here before humans.”</p><p>Mo double-took. “<em>What?”</em></p><p>“Need to find a way out.” El looked around, before spotting a door with a screen nearby. She walked over, and pressed the button, a light behind the door switching on.</p><p>“Oh my God…” Mo breathed, running over to the door. “No! That’s my son in there!”</p><p>Indeed, Elliot stood there, in the center of the room, unmoving, eyes closed like he was deep in sleep, with green wire-like structures attached to him.</p><p>“Come on!” Mo grunted, trying to force the door to open. “We have to get him out!”</p><p>El frowned, eyebrows knitting together. That setup, the little screens nearby the door, looked like something she’d seen in the lab before.</p><p>“Stop.” The girl ordered.</p><p>“What!?” Mo looked to her. “That’s my son, how would you like it if it were you in there!?”</p><p>El shook her head. The man had mistaken her warning for callousness. “Stop.” She repeated, pointing at the screen. “They’re watching him.”</p><p>“What?” Mo looked to her.</p><p>“Heartbeat,” She pointed to one reading, “Blood, breathing, brain.” El pointed to each reading. She didn’t know what each one actually <em>meant</em>, but she’d seen the scientists look over each one when they were doing their tests on her back in the lab. “Still alive, just sleeping.”</p><p>Mo looked like that was small comforts. “Right okay… So, we… find some weapons, find that creature, force it to release Elliot?”</p><p>The man was so desperate, El didn’t want to shoot him down outright. But, from what little the Doctor had sent, the Time Lord was going to try to talk the Silurians down, something that couldn’t be done if her and Mo were going to attack one.</p><p>“Need to find my dad first.” El outlined. “He’ll know what to do.”</p><p>That is, if he woke up anytime soon.</p><p>---------------</p><p>“AAAAH!” The Doctor cried in agony, as a series of lasers ran up and down his body. Upon waking up, he found himself strapped to an examination rack, just before the pain began.</p><p>The Time Lord’s own screaming was too loud for him to hear the Silurians across the way discussing things, but from what little senses he <em>was </em>able to focus, the scientist and the warrior were getting tense with each other, the warrior being related to Alaya in some way.</p><p>Then, the Doctor heard decontamination. Repeating it fearfully, with the added plea for the Silurians to stop, the pain intensified a thousand fold, the Doctor trying to thrash out of his bindings.</p><p>“Don’t worry.” The scientist tried to offer. “I’m only naturalizing your ape bacteria.”</p><p>The Doctor banged against the harness. “I’m not an ape! Check your readings!” He screamed. “Two hearts, tubes in the chest instead of lungs, totally different brain structure! Your equipment doesn’t recognize the bacteria I need to survive, so it’s going to sterilize that as well, it will <em>kill </em>me!”</p><p>The scientist gasped, checking the readings, before deactivating the decontamination device.</p><p>“No,” The warrior whipped around, “Complete the process!”</p><p>The Doctor drew in some very deep breaths, no longer feeling like every cell of his body was on fire. “Thank you… mind you, the shirt is probably ruined,” He looked down at the garishly-patterned garment replacing the normal white, “Self -cleaning, lined with a special kind of bacteria that breaks down contaminants.” The Time Lord explained, voice hoarse from the screaming. “Would one of you be so kind as to reach into my pocket and grab the stick of celery? Actually, don’t worry about it.” The Doctor focused, the vegetable slowly and shakily floating out, up to his mouth.</p><p>The Doctor took a bite, and swallowed, feeling his cells flush free of the poisonous decontamination. “That’s better. Now, I’m the Doctor.” He glanced to his left. “Ah, and there’s Nasreen, good.”</p><p>The scientist walked over to the human woman, scanning her with a medical device. Nasreen’s eyes opened, and she blinked. “Ah. A green man.”</p><p>“Hello.” The Doctor looked to the warrior. “Who are you?”</p><p>“Restac.” She answered, glaring. “Military commander.”</p><p>“Oh, dear, really?” The Doctor asked in response. “There always is a military, isn’t there?”</p><p>Restac narrowed her eyes, “Where is the rest of your invasion force?”</p><p>“Invasion force?” The Doctor repeated. “An invasion force with no weapons? No, we came here for the humans you took.” The Time Lord searched Restac’s eyes. “And to offer the safe return of Alaya.”</p><p>Restac sharply inhaled. “You claim to come for peace, and you hold one of our kind hostage!” She spun on her heel, marching away.</p><p>“Wait, wait!” The Doctor tried to call. “We all want the same thing here!”</p><p>“I don’t negotiate with apes.” Restac snarled. “I will send a clear message to the surface.”</p><p>“What’s that?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“Your execution.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>El took the lead around the corner, powers on the ready in case she needed to defend herself and Mo. Even though she was trying to feel around for the Doctor, she had no idea where he actually was, and he didn’t either, so he couldn’t send her directions. That or it was an excuse so she wouldn’t get into trouble.</p><p>The girl frowned, noticing the boxes they were passing by. “Boxes…” She frowned. Not once had they tried to open them, they could’ve had something useful. She reached for the nearby button, and the lights activated, showing one Silurian each standing inside each box.</p><p>“Ah!” Mo jumped. “Turn it off.”</p><p>El quickly went back to press the button but frowned. “They’re not moving.” She realized, hitting the lights again.</p><p>The clear barrier separating the inside of the boxes from the outside slid up, and El peeked inside, looking around. She sent an image of the place to the Doctor, waiting for the response.</p><p><em>‘Quick-deployment alcoves.’ </em>The Doctor explained. <em>‘Soldiers are kept in suspended animation separate from the rest and quickly deployed if there’s a threat to the settlement. Look up. That’s how they got to the surface so quickly.’</em></p><p>“Way out.” El pointed to the holes in the ceiling. “But find dad first.”</p><p><em>‘El, no! Get out of here!’ </em>The Doctor ordered.</p><p>El ignored him, turning to Mo. She pointed at the weapon at the Silurian’s side.</p><p><em>‘El, I swear to God, if you grab that weapon…’</em> The Doctor growled.</p><p>‘<em>Living weapon.’ </em>The reminded him.</p><p>Mo grabbed the Silurian’s gun. “What about you?” He asked, checking it over.</p><p>“Don’t need it.” El replied.</p><p><em>‘At least tell him to put it on the stun setting.’ </em>The Doctor requested. <em>‘It has a little switch on the side, push it all the way up until it glows blue.’</em></p><p>El nodded, and took the gun, pushing the switch up, before handing it back to Mo.</p><p>“What did that do?” Mo inquired.</p><p>“Maximum setting.” El lied. The man probably wasn’t thinking straight since seeing his child locked up, he probably wouldn’t like the idea of the gun being only able to stun their captors.</p><p>Now that Mo was armed, El hit the button once more, and the lights in the alcoves deactivated.</p><p>“Okay…” Mo took shaky breaths. “You’re the one with the weird, mind powers, do you know where to go next?”</p><p>El looked to the door at the end, and motioned Mo to follow, as she took the lead through a door at the end.</p><p>The moment they walked through, they came out onto a balcony, overlooking a large chamber. Lights activated, revealing a legion of Silurian Warriors in stasis standing in formation like the terracotta army. Only this time, they were ready to wake up and start killing.</p><p>“Oh.” El blinked upon seeing the massive army.</p><p>“Your dad…” Mo began in fear. “You really think he can help against something like this?”</p><p>El didn’t even need to think about the answer. “Yes.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“These must be the only ones awake.” The Doctor theorized as the Silurians led he and Nasreen through the compound. “All the others are still in hibernation.”</p><p>Nasreen frowned. “You said that, but the moon was created not long after Earth. An object the size of Mars hit us. There are even trace elements <em>from </em>the moon on Earth.”</p><p>“Well, that’s what’s <em>thought</em>.” The Doctor said. “Something did slam into Earth, but it didn’t make the moon. It helped contribute to the formation of Earth’s twin planet, Mondas.”</p><p>Nasreen naturally looked incredulous. “A twin planet? Called Mondas?”</p><p>“It was starting to form in around about the same place as Earth, just far enough away so that the two planets orbited each other while revolving around the sun.” The Doctor explained. “See, there was this species of alien that wanted to see how evolution would proceed on a planet if it was an exact duplicate of another. Turns out, identically. Anyway, the moon drifted into orbit, Mondas was flung into the depths of space, and the Silurians went into stasis.”</p><p>Restac took a breath, turning around to look demandingly at the Doctor.</p><p>“…How can you know that?” Malohkeh, the scientist, asked curiously.</p><p>The Doctor looked between the two. “A long time ago I met another tribe of Homo Reptilia. And Sea Devils.”</p><p>Restac looked intrigued. “Others of our species have survived?”</p><p>“…no.” The Doctor admitted regrettably. “They woke up and started attacking the humans. The humans defended themselves. Your brethren died… I’m sorry.” Partly the Doctor’s fault as well… all that happened back during the UNIT days.</p><p>Restac growled. “A vermin race.” She snarled. Turning on her heel, she led the group forward.</p><p>The Doctor sighed inwardly. Still, there was hope, at least.</p><p>------------</p><p>“What’s the cure?” Ambrose demanded, walking into the church’s basement. Even though Tony had looked to be fine before the Doctor had chosen to go down to the Silurian city, the man’s condition was deteriorating fast.</p><p>Alaya looked to the human distastefully. “What?”</p><p>“I saw what you’ve done to my dad.” Ambrose hissed, marching down the stairs. “What’s the cure?”</p><p>Alaya tilted her head in a condescending manner. “Why would I tell you?”</p><p>“’Cause if you don’t…” Ambrose took two steps forward, holding up a taser. “I’m going to have to use this on you.”</p><p>Alaya laughed. “Now you reveal yourselves.”</p><p>“First you take my son, now you take my dad…” Ambrose shook. “I’m just protecting my family here. I don’t want to use it.”</p><p>Alaya laughed again, mockingly. “Tell yourself whatever you must, human. If I should be a murderer… at least I can admit it to myself.”</p><p>Ambrose stared at the Silurian woman.</p><p>“Oh, but you… you’re too afraid, aren’t you?” Alaya snarled, marching forward.</p><p>“Stay back.” Ambrose ordered shakily.</p><p>“A woman who can’t even defend her own child must be too-“ Alaya was cut off, as thousands of volts of electricity suddenly began coursing through her body, and she fell to the ground.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane looked over Tony, scanner watch beeping, as she tried to tend to the man’s wounds to the best of her capabilities. She wasn’t a nurse, and though the TARDIS medbay had almost every type of antivenom known to exist, it was down with the Doctor.</p><p>Tony took in a raspy breath. “It’s bad, isn’t it?” He asked.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked at the watch. The venom seemed to be attacking his respiratory system and sucking all of the oxygen out of his blood like a sponge. If they couldn’t get him the antivenom, fast… he was going to suffocate to death.</p><p>She was debating whether or not to tell him the full truth, when suddenly, screaming came from the basement.</p><p>Sarah Jane and Tony looked to each other. “Ambrose.”</p><p>----------------</p><p>Sarah Jane busted through the door first, sonic lipstick at the ready. It wasn’t a weapon, sure, but it wasn’t like Alaya needed to know that.</p><p>However, Alaya wasn’t the one they needed to be worried about.</p><p>“Ambrose…” Tony breathed horrified, as he looked at the fallen form of Alaya, completely inert.</p><p>“S-She wouldn’t stop.” Ambrose stammered, just as horrified.</p><p>The scanner watch beeped a low, long tone, and Sarah Jane flipped the cover shut. “She’s dead.”</p><p>Tony turned to his daughter. “We have to be better than this!” He chided, taking the taser from her.</p><p>“She wouldn’t say anything!” Ambrose retorted. “I thought sooner or later she would’ve talked! I would’ve done. I just… I just want my family back.”</p><p>“Well,” Sarah Jane looked at her gravely, “You may have just destroyed our best chance at making that happen.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0041"><h2>41. Cold Blood</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“You’re not authorized to do this.” Malohkeh said to Restac as they walked through the heart of the Silurian compound.</p><p>“I’m authorized to protect the safety and security of our species.” Restac retorted.</p><p>They entered into a magnificent hall, a long table in the center of the room.</p><p>“Woah, nice place.” The Doctor complimented, looking around the ornate chamber. “Very gleaming.”</p><p>“This is our court.” Restac stated, going to the far end, before turning around to face the Doctor and Nasreen. “And our place of execution.”</p><p>A rock was suddenly hurled across the room, smashing into the wall, as El strode in, boulders floating behind her.</p><p>“Let them go.” She ordered.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor beamed. “That’s my girl!”</p><p>“You’re surrounded.” El stated, as Mo appeared in the door through which the others had entered, holding his weapon at the ready. “Now, let them go.”</p><p>Restac hissed, taking a step, before she was pushed back, and a boulder was thrown, narrowly missing her head by a few centimeters.</p><p>“That was a warning.” El clenched her fist, more rocks floating in the air behind her. “Next one, I won’t miss.”</p><p>“All right, everyone…” Malohkeh raised his hands diplomatically. “Let us all just… settle down.”</p><p>“This is now a military engagement,” Restac growled to the scientist, “Go back to your lab.”</p><p>“You’re not in charge here anymore.” El stated. “I am.” She looked to the scientist. He could’ve hurt her back in the lab, but she didn’t sense any malice coming from him, unlike the other Silurians. “You. You can go.”</p><p>Malohkeh bowed his head slightly, and made out of the room, not determined to get caught in the crossfire of a possible bloodbath.</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “El, what are you doing?”</p><p>“Rule Five: Act like you’re in charge and everybody will think so.” She replied.</p><p>“Oh, she’s good.” Nasreen chuckled.</p><p>“She learned by watching me.” The Doctor said. That alone was equal parts awesome and terrifying.</p><p>“Now,” El looked to Restac. “Let them go.”</p><p>Restac narrowed her eyes. “You believe you can take on a military force with just <em>rocks</em>?”</p><p>“No.” El stated. She reached her other hand out, and yanked, the weapons of all the Silurians inside being pulled out of their grips, before being crushed altogether. “I <em>know </em>I can. Now, one more time; Let. Them. <em>Go.</em>”</p><p>“Stop!” An aged voice suddenly bellowed, its owner striding into the room. He was a Silurian, older than the others they’d seen so far, wearing very regal robes. “Restac, are you <em>trying </em>to start a war while the rest of us sleep?”</p><p>“Eldane, these apes are attacking us!” Restac replied, furiously pointing. “They will kill us, the first chance they get to do so!”</p><p>Eldane blinked, looking them over. “You’re all still standing here, are you not?”</p><p>Restac recoiled slightly. “W-Well, yes, but-“</p><p>“Do as the girl says. Release them.” Eldane ordered.</p><p>Restac narrowed her eyes. “She is an ape.”</p><p>“She has been blessed with the Gift.” Eldane calmly informed.</p><p>Restac looked to him awestruck, before that swiftly morphed to disbelief. “Impossible.”</p><p><em>‘What are they talking about?’ </em>El sent to the Doctor.</p><p><em>‘The Silurians had a sort of caste system with tons of different subspecies.’ </em>The Time Lord explained. <em>‘Some of the subspecies had psychic abilities as well. They occupied the very highest of the caste system. They’re recognizing that same authority in you now, even though you’re human.’</em></p><p>“Look at her, Restac.” Malohkeh gestured.</p><p>“We used to hunt apes for <em>sport.</em>” Restac sneered to the scientist. “When we went underground, they bred and polluted this planet!”</p><p>“And now, one of them has the Gift of Azathoth.” Eldane cut her off. “Go, play soldiers elsewhere. If you cannot respect a Child of the Great Old One, you’re not needed here. Those of you who <em>can</em>, you may stay.”</p><p>Restac glared, narrowing her eyes as she hit the button on her gauntlet to release the manacles. “You <em>will </em>need me.” She vowed, before she and half her warriors exited the room.</p><p>Eldane looked at the retreating form of the military commander, before turning back to the humans’ group. “Now then… perhaps we may be able to talk?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane looked anxiously at the dead body, covering it with a tarp. She wasn’t aware of Silurian burial customs, but it would have to suffice until they could get back in contact with the Doctor.</p><p><em>“Hello, hello!” </em>The Doctor’s voice suddenly called from an unplugged computer monitor nearby. <em>“You lot, are you receiving me?”</em></p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane ran over. “I’m here! Have you found the others!?”</p><p><em>“Yep!” </em>The Time Lord beamed, <em>“Just wanted to give you a quick heads-up, we’re talking to the leader of the Silurian settlement, trying to get things worked out. You three, get to the drill storeroom, there’s a large patch of earth in the middle of the floor. The Silurians are going to send up transport discs to bring you all down to their compound. Bring Alaya, we’re going to make the switch, and get this sorted! Gotta dash!”</em></p><p>The screen cut out, and Sarah Jane gulped.</p><p>“The moment we get down there, everything will fall apart!” Tony stated.</p><p>“…we have to return her.” Sarah Jane resolved. “She needs a burial, at least.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right, well,” The Doctor clapped, looking over the table of humans and Silurians. “You lot have certainly got your work cut out for you.”</p><p>“How so?” Eldane asked.</p><p>“You both want the planet, you both have a genuine claim to it.” The Doctor answered, leaning on the table.</p><p>Eldane tilted his head. “Are you authorized to negotiate on behalf of humanity?”</p><p>“Me, no!” The Doctor gladly replied. “But they are!” He pointed to the humans at the end of the table.</p><p>“What?” Nasreen’s head shot up.</p><p>“We’re not.” El frowned.</p><p>“Of course you are, you’re the humans!” The Doctor grinned. “Besides, a child in negotiations is a good thing to have. They’re not afraid to call out things if they’re unfair.”</p><p>“We can’t <em>share </em>the planet.” Nasreen stated. “It’s just- Think about how things are on the surface right now!”</p><p>“Nasreen, you are a brilliant human being. I have faith in you. And, well, Eldane’s already proved he’s willing to listen to El.” The Doctor smiled, hitting the table. “Okay! The first meeting between the ambassadors of human kind and the ambassadors of Silurian kind is now in session.” He suddenly let out a joyous laugh. “Never said that before. Carry on.” He clapped his hands, pointing across the table. “Okay, Mo, let’s go get your son.”</p><p>The man nodded and followed the Time Lord’s lead.</p><p>El looked back to the table of Silurians. Diplomatic talks between a species far older than humanity were now falling to her. No matter what she did here, history could be made in the best, or worst, way. To <em>her, </em>a twelve-year-old.</p><p>She could do this.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane looked at the four discs in the ground, waiting for them, as Tony gently laid Alaya’s body on the ground, the Silurian wrapped in a blanket.</p><p>“So we get on those,” Tony asked, pointing to the discs, “And they take us down through the Earth?”</p><p>Sarah Jane nodded. “Gravity bubble technology. It’ll keep us from flying off or being crushed by the sudden stop.”</p><p>“They sent four.” Ambrose looked to the discs with trepidation. “She was our only bargaining chip.”</p><p>“…We still have to bring her.” Sarah Jane resolved. “You two, get ready.” She told them.</p><p>“Right…” Ambrose swallowed. “Dad, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Elliot…” The Doctor looked into the chamber of the sleeping child. “There you are.”</p><p>Mo turned to Malohkeh, shaking with rage, as the scientist worked to free the child from stasis. “If you’ve harmed him in any way-“</p><p>“Of course not.” Malohkeh cut Mo off. “I only store the young.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned. “You were about to dissect El.” He recalled.</p><p>“Dissection?” Malohkeh repeated. “Heavens, no. That instrument may have appeared similar in appearance, but it was a standard medical tricorder. I take scans of the young, then store them here.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded approvingly. Malohkeh may have vivisected Mo, but it was nice to see the Silurian had some standards. Still, something was bothering him. “But why?”</p><p>“I never meant to harm your children, either of them.” Malohkeh looked to the two fathers. “Children are rather like the… soul, of a species. Adults may run the world, in any society, but the young… They are the dreamers, the imaginers. From a child, you can learn a great many things, about the society they come from, their art, their culture. And, in the process, something about yourself.”</p><p>“Malohkeh,” The Doctor held out a hand to the Silurian scientist. “I rather like you. After this is done, there’s a lovely tavern in Epsilon Eridanus that sells beer safe for Silurian consumption, perhaps you and I could go for a drink?”</p><p>Why yes, that was <em>exactly </em>what it sounded like.</p><p>The Silurian returned the gesture proudly and turned to free Elliot from stasis. “There. It’s safe to wake him.”</p><p>The door slid open, and Malohkeh strode into the chamber first, removing the thin wires from Elliot’s skin. The boy looked blankly ahead but did not flinch or react at first.</p><p>“Come.” Malohkeh gestured to Mo. “His brain is returning to its normal functions, just allow him a moment.” He explained, stepping back.</p><p>“Elliot,” Mo addressed, the boy looking around in confusion, “Ell, it’s dad.”</p><p>“Wha…?” The boy rubbed his forehead. “Dad.”</p><p>Mo launched into a relieved hug, clutching his child tightly.</p><p>“Where are we?” Elliot asked, pulling back from his father.</p><p>“Well… I’ve got to be honest with you, son.” Mo gulped. “We’re in the center of the earth. And there’s lizard people.”</p><p>Elliot’s jaw dropped, as he looked to the door, Malohkeh waving with a kind smile. “Greetings… small human.” The Silurian addressed.</p><p>“Wow.” Elliot breathed.</p><p>“Elliot,” The Doctor took a step in, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let you go by yourself.”</p><p>“It’s alright.” Elliot replied.</p><p>The Doctor smiled, shaking the boy’s hand, as the three of them stepped back out, beginning the walk back to the meeting hall.</p><p>“You go on ahead, Doctor.” Malohkeh said, “I will catch up.”</p><p>The Time Lord nodded and took the lead of the other two.</p><p><em>“Storage facility 19 operational.” </em>The automated female voice reported.</p><p>Malohkeh turned and went to attend to his business.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“We’d been living on the surface of this world for far longer than humanity.” Eldane stated, not trying to act superior, just stating the truth. “Our goal is simply to return to our rightful place.”</p><p>“But our planet is already having enough trouble sustaining the people who live here.” Nasreen replied. “This year <em>alone</em> we’ve had mass rioting, a global pandemic, come close to another world war, and climate change has been worse than it has ever been. And you want to add another species onto that?”</p><p>El sighed, her forehead resting on her arms. The talks had been slow going for sure.</p><p>“We could help to… alleviate some of these issues.” Eldane stated.</p><p>Nasreen tilted her head. “What?”</p><p>“Bioengineering was the technological cornerstone of our species.” Eldane began. “Our equivalent to your wheel. We could engineer a cure to this… pandemic of yours, breed plants that could convert harmful gasses into oxygen a hundred times the rate of natural plants. Safe fuels, population concerns… our kind had solved this long before the cataclysm struck. All we ask is for a place to live.”</p><p>As the talks went on, the ambassadors from both species began to fear that they might never reach a resolution. Eldane brought up good points, but Nasreen worried that perhaps it simply wasn’t a good time for the Silurians to return to Earth. Humanity was dealing with its own problems; it didn’t need to have cohabitation with another sapient species on top of that.</p><p>Until, that is, El came up with an idea.</p><p>“The whole world isn’t livable.” El said, looking over the globe. The Doctor had given her a little bit of information on Earth, particularly about the different sorts of climates. “Look, desert.” She pointed to the Sahara and Gobi deserts. “Outback.” Australia. “Death Valley. All too hot for humans.”</p><p>“But perfect for cold-blooded organisms, such as us.” Eldane finished the girl’s thought. “It as I said before, Doctor Chaudhry. Our people were a great civilization, who made many advances. Once we return to the surface, we would be more than willing to share them with you. We even had spaceflight… Imagine it, a vast, interstellar civilization spanning every arm of the galaxy, and beyond.”</p><p>“…Okay.” Nasreen nodded with a smile. “Now I’m starting to see it.”</p><p>Applause came from the end of the room, the Doctor striding in with Mo and Elliot.</p><p>“Not bad for a first session.” The Doctor complimented with a smile. “I knew you could get along. More similarities than differences.”</p><p>An electronic echo entered the chamber, Eldane looking up. “The transport has returned. I believe your friends are here.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0042"><h2>42. The Explosion</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Malohkeh walked through the tunnels, into the storage room. “That’s not right…” He frowned, looking at the empty stasis chamber. He finally turned to the rest of the wing, frowning, as he saw Restac awaking the rest of her warriors. “What are you doing?” He demanded.</p><p>“Protecting our race against the apes.” Restac hissed.</p><p>“You can’t do this!”</p><p>“You’re a good scientist, Malohkeh…” Restac raised her weapon. “But this is war.”</p><p>Malohkeh quickly began stepping back, before Restac pulled the trigger, a red beam of energy shooting out, blasting the Silurian man square in the heart.</p><p>The scientist shuddered in pain, and fell to the ground, dead.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor stood, watching the door expectantly. He smiled, upon seeing Sarah Jane turn the corner. “Here they are.”</p><p>Ambrose followed Sarah Jane, and her eyes locked on Elliot.</p><p>“Mum!” The boy shouted happily, running into his mother’s arms.</p><p>“Aunt Sarah.” El greeted.</p><p>Despite the calmness of things before, the moment Tony entered, the Doctor went cold.</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to the Doctor, “What’s that?”</p><p>The Time Lord stared at Tony, as he walked forward ahead of the others, and gently laid the body down. “No…” The Doctor breathed. “Tell me you didn’t do this…” His eyes locked on Ambrose. He had the woman made the <em>second </em>she walked through the door. “Tell me you didn’t do this!” He bellowed.</p><p>The Doctor crouched by the body and looked up at Ambrose. “What. Did. You. Do?”</p><p>“It was me.” Ambrose admitted, not answering the Doctor’s question. “I did it.”</p><p>Elliot looked to his mother in horror. “Mum?”</p><p>“I just wanted you back…” She told the boy, as he broke free of her grip.</p><p>“You realize what you’ve done…” The Doctor began. The Time Lord hurriedly turned to Eldane. “They’re better than this, you have to believe me.”</p><p>The Silurian looked away.</p><p>“This is our planet!” Ambrose shouted.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor whipped back around. “You had a chance to prove that you could be the best of humanity, and you blew it! And now, other people are going to pay the price for <em>your </em>mistake!”</p><p>Ambrose glowered at the Doctor, the sound of marching rising in the distance.</p><p>The Doctor looked away from the woman, to the door, as the squad of warriors, outfitted with weapons again, came marching in.</p><p>“My sister.” Restac demanded, as the warriors spread out to fill the room. Her eyes locked on the body on the floor, and she walked over slowly, gently lifting the cover on her sister’s face.</p><p>Upon seeing Alaya’s face, locked forever in a pained grimace, Restac let out an anguished cry.</p><p>Before that cry morphed to fury.</p><p>“And you want us to <em>trust </em>these apes, Doctor?” Restac demanded.</p><p>The Time Lord held up a finger. “One woman. She was scared for her family, she’s not typical.”</p><p>Restac shot to her feet, pivoting around to glare at Ambrose. “I think she is.”</p><p>“One person let us down!” The Doctor continued trying. “But there is an entire species of beautiful, peaceful human beings up there! The majority of them are not like her! They don’t wish for conflict!” The Doctor let out a furious groan. “Come on, you were building something great here! There’s still a chance!”</p><p>“…No there’s not, Doctor.” Ambrose shakily spoke up.</p><p>The Time Lord furiously whipped around to her. “…What?”</p><p>“Our drill.” Ambrose gulped. “It’s set to start burrowing again in…” She checked her watch. “Fifteen minutes.”</p><p>Nasreen’s eyes widened. “What?”</p><p>“What choice did I have?” Tony spoke up. “They had Elliot.”</p><p>The Doctor looked between the humans, horrified, disappointed, and furious. “You’ve started a war… All because you couldn’t handle not being in control for one second you… <em>stupid apes!”</em></p><p>Restac’s breaths grew deep. “EXECUTE HER!” She bellowed, the warriors raising their weapons.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor dived, pulling Ambrose out of the way. “Everybody back to the lab, run!” He ordered, raising his sonic screwdriver.</p><p>“Execute all the apes!” Restac ordered.</p><p>The Doctor pressed the button on his screwdriver, the guns in the warriors’ hands sparking. “This is a deadly weapon!” He bluffed, following the others. The Doctor narrowly dodged a strike from one of the warriors venomous tongues, as the group of humans, plus Eldane, ran into the tunnels. “Get everyone to the lab!” He ordered, stopping and turning around. “I’ll cover you!”</p><p>“Dad-“</p><p>“Go, El!” The Doctor ordered, raising the screwdriver again. The girl swallowed what she was going to say, and followed the others, as the Doctor stood in the corridor.</p><p>The team of warriors came marching in, ready to fire, and the Doctor zapped the guns out of their hands. “Ah! Not another step, or I’ll use my very deadly weapon on you again!” He looked to the warriors. “Now, one warning, that’s all you get. If there can be no deal, you all go back into hibernation, now. This ends here.”</p><p>“No!” Restac spat. “It only ends in our victory!”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. “Like I said… one warning.” He pressed the button, and the guns sparked, falling out of the warriors’ hands. Taking the opportunity afforded by the confusion, the Doctor sprinted away to join the others.</p><p>He ran into the lab, sonicing the door shut on his way in. “Elliot!” He pointed to the boy. “You and your dad keep your eye on that screen! Let me know if we’ve got company. El!” He tossed his watch over to her. “Keep your eye on that, let me know how much time I haven’t got.”</p><p>“Okay, umm…” The girl looked at the watch, the TARDIS translation kicking in a moment later. All this time, and the Doctor still hadn’t taught her how to read time on her own. “12:30 and going down.”</p><p>“Alright.” The Doctor turned to Tony. “Tony Mack, sweaty forehead, dilated pupils, what are you hiding?”</p><p>The man groaned, opening his shirt to show the green veins spreading across his chest like an infection.</p><p>“Tony…” Nasreen breathed. “What happened?”</p><p>“Alaya’s sting.” Tony coughed. “She said there was no cure.”</p><p>“No cure right now.” The Doctor replied. “That decontamination protocol should be enough.” He turned to Eldane. “Can you run the decontamination program on him?”</p><p>Eldane nodded. “Certainly.” He guided Tony over to the medical harness.</p><p>“Doctor!” Mo shouted. “Shedload of those creatures comin’ our way!” He looked up from the screen. “We’re surrounded in here.”</p><p>“So,” The Doctor clapped his hands. “How do we stop the drill given we don’t have enough time? Also, how do we get out of here if we’re surrounded? Nasreen,” He looked to her, “How do you feel about a big energy pulse sent up through the tunnels to the base of the drill?” He proposed.</p><p>Nasreen looked demandingly at the Doctor. “To blow up my life’s work?”</p><p>“Well, it’s either that, or suffocate in a cave-in.”</p><p>“…Alright, yes, but you’d have to do it before the drill hits the city.” Nasreen replied.</p><p>“Don’t worry,” The Doctor walked over to the lab terminal. “I work better under pressure.”</p><p>“But, we would have to get out before that happens.” Sarah Jane spoke up. “Or we’d suffocate in another cave-in anyway, and Restac’s troops are still blocking the way.”</p><p>“I believe I can help with that.” Eldane stepped forward. “Toxic fumigation. Failsafe protocol meant to protect our species from infection. A warning to occupy stasis pods, and then, the city is fumigated with toxic gas. Then, the city shuts down.”</p><p>The Doctor slowly nodded and began the search for the protocol.</p><p>“But… you could kill your own people.” El stated.</p><p>Eldane turned to the girl. “Only those foolish enough to follow Restac’s will.”</p><p>“Eldane,” The Doctor turned to the elder Silurian, “Are you sure about this?”</p><p>“My duty is the survival of the species.” Eldane stated. “Your world is not ready for us… But, perhaps it will be, one day.”</p><p>“One day.” The Doctor echoed. “Right, everybody, listen up. Eldane, you get the protocol ready. I’ll amend the system so it’ll wake you lot up on a time interval of… let’s say a thousand years.” He turned to the humans in the room. “A thousand years to get the planet sorted out, pass it on. A legend, or prophecy, or religion, but somehow, make it known.”</p><p>“…Yes.” Elliot spoke up. “I understand.”</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, moving around back to the control terminal.</p><p>“Nine minutes.” El relayed.</p><p>“Oh, fluid control, I love fluids!” The Doctor rambled, tapping the controls. “Energy pulse timed, primed, and set. Before we go, energy barricade, need to cancel it out.” He soniced the panel, deactivating the barricade on the surface.</p><p>“Fumigation pre-launching.” Eldane reported.</p><p>“Is there going to be enough time for us to get back to the TARDIS?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“Of course!”</p><p>“Oh, so we’re going to be cutting it <em>that </em>close then.” Sarah Jane rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Doctor, the decontamination protocol on your friend hasn’t started yet.” Eldane informed.</p><p>The Time Lord glanced over to the Welshman in the harness.</p><p>“Well, go!” Tony ordered. “All of you! Go!”</p><p>“No, we’re not leaving you here!” Ambrose insisted.</p><p>“Granddad!” Elliot ran over into the man’s arms.</p><p>“Eight minutes.” El read.</p><p>“Now, you look after your mum.” Tony instructed Elliot. “Don’t blame her. She was only trying to rescue you.”</p><p>“…I would’ve done the same.” The Doctor admitted, looking to them.</p><p>Elliot swallowed. “I’m not going to see you again, am I?”</p><p>“I’ll be here.” Tony replied, poking the boy in the chest. “Always… I love you, boy.” He turned to Ambrose. “You be sure he gets home.”</p><p>“This is my fault…” Ambrose cried.</p><p>“No,” Tony replied, “I can’t go back up there, I’d be a freakshow. The technology down here is my only hope.”</p><p>Ambrose teared up and wrapped her arms around Tony. “I love you, dad.”</p><p>Tony swallowed, and pulled back. “Go. Go!”</p><p>“Come on.” Mo gently pulled Ambrose to his side, as Tony went back to the harness.</p><p>The lights suddenly went dark, green emergency lights flashing, as a klaxon sounded. <em>“Toxic fumigation initiated. Return to stasis chambers immediately.”</em></p><p>“They’re going!” El reported, looking at the screen.</p><p>“All right, everyone, follow Nasreen, look for the blue box marked Police!” He outlined, moving to the door. “Get ready to run!” He soniced the door open, El leading the way for the group as they ran.</p><p>For a moment, however, the Doctor hung back, looking to Eldane. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>“I thought, for a moment, our race and humanity could co-exist in harmony.” Eldane stated.</p><p>“Yeah… So did I.” The Doctor responded.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted from down the tunnel. “Come on!”</p><p>“I’m coming!” The Doctor replied. He shook Eldane’s hand one last time, before looking to Nasreen. “Let’s go.”</p><p>The woman thinned her lips and shook her head. “Yeah, I’m not coming.”</p><p>The Doctor, who had been moving to exit, abruptly stopped, pivoting on his heel. “What?”</p><p>“We’re going to hibernate with them.” Nasreen elaborated, moving to Tony’s side. “Me and Tony.”</p><p>“Doctor, you must go!” Eldane hurried.</p><p>“I can be decontaminated when we’ve woken…” Tony rasped, looking at Nasreen. “All the time in the world.”</p><p>“But-“ The Doctor took a step. “Nasreen, you-?”</p><p>“No, this is perfect.” She replied. “I don’t want to go. I’ve got what I was digging for. I can’t leave when I’ve just found it.”</p><p>Little shoes pounded the ground as El ran back into the room. “Dad, come <em>on!”</em></p><p>“Thank you, Doctor.” Nasreen offered.</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “The pleasure was all mine.” He looked down at his watch, and checked it, eyes bugging out. He grabbed El’s hand, pulled her up onto his back without warning, and began to run.</p><p>“Come and look for us!” Nasreen called, as the lab sealed shut.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El laughed, despite the situation, as the Doctor ran back through the Silurian gardens towards the TARDIS.</p><p>Piggyback rides were <em>fun.</em></p><p>“Run, run, run!” The Doctor shouted to the other four as they ran across the bridge extending over the lava.</p><p>Finally, they rounded the bend into the little chamber with the TARDIS, and the Doctor reached into his pocket, searching for the key, as he let El down.</p><p>“No questions, just get in!” He ordered the others, as he unlocked the doors, pushing them open. “Yes, I know, it’s big! Ambrose, sickbay! Up the stairs, then left, then left again!”</p><p>The woman nodded in confusion, as she was pushed in first, Mo and Elliot following her.</p><p>“Come on, we’ve only got five-“ The Doctor turned around, freezing at the enormous glowing crack in the cave wall. “No… not here. Not now. It’s getting wider.”</p><p>“Doctor…” Sarah Jane’s eyebrows knit in confusion. “What is that?”</p><p>“Something exploded.” The Doctor explained, as he went over to examine the fissure. “Something so powerful, something so monumentally important to the universe… its destruction cracked everything. Now, these are like… black holes. Only they feed on time.”</p><p>The watch in El’s hands beeped. “Dad, we have to go!”</p><p>“The Weeping Angels knew, why did they know…” The Doctor frowned. “But, where there’s an explosion!” He suddenly got an idea, reaching into his jacket, pulling out a handkerchief. “There’s shrapnel!”</p><p>“Doctor, don’t put your hand in there!” Sarah Jane ordered, as the Time Lord walked over to do exactly that.</p><p>The Doctor, ignoring the woman, plunged his hand into the fissure, the light that was spilling out intensifying upon contact. His face twisted, and he began screaming in pain, stamping one of his legs repeatedly. “I’ve got something!” He gasped.</p><p>“What?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor yanked his hand out, falling to the ground, holding the smoking handkerchief. “I don’t know.” He would’ve taken a moment to look, but he’d need it to cool off first.</p><p>Sarah Jane heard something, turning to the tunnel. “Doctor!”</p><p>El and the Doctor’s heads looked over, seeing Restac pulling herself along the floor, a weapon in her other hand. The Silurian tried to take aim-</p><p>And her neck snapped, as she fell to the ground, dead.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor shouted, mortified.</p><p>“I wasn’t going to let her kill you!” El shot back.</p><p>“You didn’t have to kill her!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“She was dying anyway!” El replied. “Were you just going to let her suffer!?”</p><p>Oh. Well, she had a point there. Telekinetic neck-snapping was a quick way to go at least.</p><p>The ground began to tremble, as the fissure in the wall widened, tendrils of light beginning to reach out.</p><p>“What is that!?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“Into the TARDIS, now!” The Doctor ordered, pushing them through the doors. He looked back watching, as the light came into contact with Restac’s body, her form from the bottom up beginning to dissolve into light as well, before becoming nothing.</p><p>The Doctor slammed the TARDIS doors shut, before running up to the console, putting the ship into motion. God only knows what would happen if the time fissure tried to consume the TARDIS as well. Before long, the ship settled again, going calm.</p><p>“I have seen some things today,” Mo began, Elliot and Ambrose following, the three of them looking as amazed as can be. “But this is mad!”</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to the watch, “Five seconds.”</p><p>The Doctor shot to his feet and ran to the doors.</p><p>There was no way he was going to miss this firework show. Sprinting out of the TARDIS first, the Doctor braced himself for the coming explosion.</p><p>The enormous yellow upper support structure of the drill suddenly went up in a blaze of orange, the six standing at the top of the hill watching enraptured, as the surrounding grounds were showered in burning metal, the rest of them more than a safe distance away.</p><p>The day was saved again… but it shouldn’t have needed saving to begin with.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“All Nasreen’s work… just erased.” Sarah Jane remarked, shaking her head as they walked through the graveyard.</p><p>“Good thing she’s not here to see it.” Mo stated. “She’s going to give Tony <em>hell </em>when they wake up.” They walked past the church, past the two standing across from each other in the doorway.</p><p>“You could’ve let those things shoot me.” Ambrose said to the Doctor after a moment.</p><p>“I could’ve.” The Doctor agreed. “But I wasn’t going to. I know what it’s like… When they took El, I was ready to rip the planet apart to get her back.” He glanced back at her. “I don’t blame you for wanting to save Elliot.”</p><p>Ambrose huffed. “But you do blame me for royally cocking everything up.”</p><p>The Doctor said nothing for a moment. “Now, you show your son how wrong you were. How there’s always another way. You make him the best of humanity… That’s our job as parents anyway.” He offered her a smile, before stepping out, back to the TARDIS.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right then,” The Doctor drew a breath as the three of them walked back to the blue box. “Shall we try for Rio again?”</p><p>“Hm...” Sarah Jane replied. “We’ve been to Lithone, which was all tropical, and then we went to Space Florida. How about… a city?”</p><p>“City, I can do city.” The Doctor smiled in response.</p><p>“Oh, look!” El spoke up pointing at the other hill. “There we are again! Hello!” The group of people waved back, and she tilted her head. “Hm…”</p><p>“What is it?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“My hair.” El replied. “It’s long.”</p><p>Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “Yes? Why?”</p><p>“…I want long hair.” El suddenly decided. “Long-<em>er</em> hair.” She corrected.</p><p>“We can get some growth treatments done in the TARDIS.” The Doctor replied, opening the door. “Go on. I’ll just be a second.”</p><p>The two nodded, even though Sarah Jane looked slightly suspicious, and stepped back into the TARDIS.</p><p>The Doctor reached into his pocket, grabbing the bit of shrapnel from the time fissure.</p><p>The Time Lord unwrapped it from the handkerchief and froze in shock and horror. It was a little fragment, singed and warped, but intact enough for the Doctor to recognize it had once been a sign.</p><p>
  <em>‘POLICE TE-‘</em>
</p><p>
  <em>‘FR-‘</em>
</p><p>The Doctor held up a fragment to the sign on the telephone door of the TARDIS.</p><p>
  <em>‘POLICE TELEPHONE</em>
</p><p>
  <em>FREE FOR USE OF PUBLIC</em>
</p><p><em>ADVICE AND ASSISTANCE OBTAINABLE IMMEDIATELY </em>(that was the Doctor’s favorite part of the sign, incidentally)</p><p>
  <em>OFFICERS AND CARS RESPOND TO ALL CALLS</em>
</p><p>
  <em>PULL TO OPEN’</em>
</p><p>The text on the fragment lined up with the text on the TARDIS <em>perfectly.</em></p><p>Either the TARDIS had been caught in the explosion, or a more likely, and much more terrifying thought…</p><p>The TARDIS had <em>caused</em> the explosion.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0043"><h2>43. A Hairy Situation (Get It?)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“So, hair growth treatment!” The Doctor spun around, hopping around the sickbay like a spring. “Oh, I’ve been waiting to use this!” He reached into one of the cabinets, pulling out a jar of purple gel.</p><p>The Doctor hurried over to the chair that El was sitting in and sat the jar down on a nearby table. Unscrewing the top, the Doctor launched into another fit of ramblings, as he put on some latex gloves.</p><p>“I picked this up on Akhaten all the way back during my first life!” He explained, scooping out a little bit of the goop.</p><p>Sarah Jane, who was observing just in case, looked at the substance warily. “Are you sure you shouldn’t just take her to a salon in the fifty-first century? That’s where we got my hair rejuvenated after the natives on Poosh burned it off.”</p><p>“That place?” The Doctor replied. “It didn’t come back in the right way, those people were hacks, hacks I tell you! Whereas I,” He pressed his hand to his chest, “Am a trained professional.”</p><p>“Really?” Sarah Jane sarcastically asked, looking at the Doctor’s shirt.</p><p>The Time Lord looked down... at the big splotch of purple gel now on his shirt. “Ah.” He went back to get some more. “Well, I needed a bit of hair on the chest anyhow. Now,” He went back for more, “Hold still.” He told El, rubbing the gel into her hair, over every little bit of hair on her head.</p><p>The girl scowled, squirming slightly at just how cold the gel was as the Doctor rubbed it into her scalp. After a few moments however, the Doctor removed his hands, and pulled the gloves off, tossing them into the bin.</p><p>“There.” The Time Lord said satisfactorily, positioning a mirror in front of El. “Now, watch.”</p><p>El gasped as the hair on her head began to grow rapidly, the gel disappearing altogether, as her hair lengthened. El watched as the thin inch of hair became thicker, falling just over her ears, before stopping, into a thick mop of brown hair.</p><p>“Hm…” The Doctor frowned. “That label said it was good for inducing a full year’s worth. That’s what I get for buying something at space Vegas.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the Doctor demandingly. “I thought you said you picked it up on Akhaten.”</p><p>“Akhaten, space Vegas, same difference.” The Doctor waved away. “Now, El, what do you think?”</p><p>The girl looked into the mirror, before reaching her hand up to her hair. It felt soft, lush, nice to run her fingers through even a short as it was. Still, she couldn’t ever remember having hair that long.</p><p>El smiled. “Pretty.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Yes, you are.” He suddenly sniffed her hair, grimacing. “You probably want to wash it, though. That gel has one helluva stench.”</p><p>El nodded, getting to her feet, wrapping her arms around the Doctor. “Thanks, dad.”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled. “Don’t mention it. Now, come on, bath time.”</p><p>El nodded, allowing the Doctor to lead her.</p><p>Sarah Jane tilted her head, looking the Doctor up and down. “You take baths with her?”</p><p>“She has a phobia of the water, doesn’t like being left on her own.” The Doctor explained. “Besides, the bathtub’s the size of the swimming pool and I keep clothed and turn my head… and I wouldn’t <em>have </em>to keep doing it if <em>someone </em>hadn’t tried to eat the shampoo!”</p><p>El huffed, crossing her arms. “Smells like strawberries. …You ate the soap.”</p><p>“It was minty!” The Doctor insisted.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked between the both of them, laughing. “I’m going to have to childproof this place for the <em>both </em>of you, aren’t I?”</p><p>“Ha, ha.” The Doctor sarcastically responded. “And for the record again, I’m not the one who tried to prove that conditioner was crunchy.”</p><p>Sarah Jane’s face flushed with embarrassment that time.</p><p>-------------</p><p>El ruffled the towel through her hair, as she proceeded through the corridor back to her room. The long hair was going to be something to get used to. But she could manage.</p><p>The door to her room slid open, and El abruptly stopped.</p><p>Her surprise quickly morphed into joy.</p><p>“Jane!” El beamed, dropping the towel, running over to her future self.</p><p>“Ack!” Jane coughed upon impact. She looked down and smiled slightly as well. “Hey, kid.”</p><p>El tilted her head, as she pulled back. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“What makes you think something’s wrong?” Jane asked in response.</p><p>“Hello,” El threw out her arms, “It’s <em>me</em>.”</p><p>Jane laughed slightly. “Right, yeah. I forgot.”</p><p>“You <em>forgot</em>?” El questioned.</p><p>“Hey, it’s not my fault, you were obviously not paying enough attention.” Jane retorted. “…Living through all this the second time around is just as much of a surprise for me as it is you.”</p><p>El looked Jane up and down, frowning in confusion. “How are you here?”</p><p>“What, you’re not happy to see me?” Jane asked in response.</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “Last time it was because the TARDIS broke, before that it was in the store. How are you here.”</p><p>Jane sighed, and held up her left arm, tapping the leather strap fixed around her wrist. “Vortex manipulator. Cheap and nasty time travel.”</p><p>El examined the wrist strap curiously, before looking back to her future self. “Where’d you get it?”</p><p>“It’s not technically mine.” Jane admitted.</p><p>El frowned. “It’s not yours and you took it… stealing. Dad said stealing was bad.”</p><p>“I don’t care!” Jane suddenly snapped, El recoiling in shock. The woman sighed apologetically. “I’m sorry, kid. It’s just… we’re going through some things right now.”</p><p>“Who are?” El asked.</p><p>“Probably shouldn’t say, because spoilers...” Jane stated. “But my boyfriend and I.”</p><p>El cocked her head. “What’s boyfriend?”</p><p>Jane inhaled sharply, flopping onto the bed. “Right now, the scourge of my existence. Augh!” She groaned. “Why couldn’t I have just been born homosexual!?”</p><p>El blinked, not really understanding what was going on.</p><p>Jane sighed. “Okay, spoilers, so I’m going to try to cut this down as best I can. Dad did a clever thing, when he did, Will came aboard the TARDIS with us.”</p><p>“Will came abord the TARDIS? But dad said Will was a dream.” El recalled incorrectly.</p><p>“No, his exact words were ‘I don’t know.’” Jane informed. She looked to her younger self seriously. “Will wasn’t a dream. He was real, very, very real.”</p><p>El took a breath. “What?”</p><p>“The Dream Lord built the entire Hawkins dream around the idea of it being a normal life.” Jane explained, tapping her leg up and down. “That meant house, marriage, kids… The Dream Lord drew on our minds. Will was the first boy our age that we’d seen at the time, ergo… he got pulled in for the ride as well. In another world, maybe it would’ve been someone else… but he was the first one he saw, so he was the one who got dragged in.”</p><p>“So, Will’s real?” El hopefully questioned. “We can go find him!”</p><p>“Not today.” Jane replied. “But one day. Anyway, things happened, weird things, shenanigans, and we ended up back on Earth, and…” She let out a regretful sigh. “We got into a fight.”</p><p>El tilted her head curiously.</p><p>Jane sighed. “Every couple goes through rough patches. Besides, he’d been hanging around Uncle Jack for a while at that point, so I’d be more surprised if Will <em>wasn’t </em>questioning his sexuality.”</p><p>“Uncle Jack…” El furrowed her eyebrows, recalling. “The man in the long coat at the store.”</p><p>“Yep.” Jane confirmed. “Stole this off of him while he was sleeping… actually, I snapped his neck, but don’t worry, he’s fine.”</p><p>“Fine?” El questioned.</p><p>“Yeah, Uncle Jack’s impossible to kill.” Jane waved away. “Worst case-scenario, he’s going break into my snack stash. Which he does anyway.”</p><p>El’s eyebrows knit together. “Why’d you come here, though?”</p><p>“Best thing for big fights like this is for both parties to cool down. I’m giving Will space to cool down and giving myself enough space <em>from </em>him to cool down. So, that’s why I’m here. Now,” She turned to face her younger self properly, “I didn’t come here just to talk about boys. We’d fail the Bechdel test so fast it’d not even be funny.” Jane looked to her younger self expectantly. “What do you want to do?”</p><p>“Me?” El repeated.</p><p>“Yep.” Jane confirmed. “As of right now, all talk about boys is barred. We’re just going to faff about now.”</p><p>“Hm…” El frowned in thought, playing with her hair.</p><p>“Oh, that’s it!” Jane got an idea. “You just got your hair lengthened, but you know what you haven’t gotten it?”</p><p>El tilted her head.</p><p>“Done!” Jane grabbed her younger self’s hand, taking the lead out into the corridor.</p><p>“Wait, what about dad and Aunt Sarah?” El questioned.</p><p>Jane waved the concern away. “Mama won’t let ‘em run into us.” She checked the readout on the vortex manipulator. “Besides, I picked this time because dad’s dropping her back on Earth for the weekend.”</p><p>El frowned. “Why’s she going back?”</p><p>“If you were Sarah Jane Smith, and had to spend an extended period of time in <em>our </em>company, you’d understand.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Oh, wow…” Jane commented as she played around with El’s hair in the TARDIS salon. “I forgot just how short my hair used to be.”</p><p>“…I like it.” El said.</p><p>“I didn’t say it was bad.” Jane replied. “No, you look great. Not Eleven anymore.”</p><p>“Exactly.” El agreed.</p><p>“Now… I don’t want to go too wild, just making it look nice.” Jane said, “River taught me how to do this.”</p><p>El looked to her future self curiously. “You taught River how to fly the TARDIS, but she had to teach you hair?”</p><p>“I didn’t teach River how to fly the TARDIS. <em>We </em>did.” Jane corrected, brushing her younger self’s hair back. “Now, dad should have some hair gel around here…” The woman looked around, popping the top off the can. “Dad doesn’t really use this anymore, but the TARDIS keeps it stocked just in case.”</p><p>El frowned at the substance, looking back up. “Hair’s fine.”</p><p>“It’s fine, yes, but you just got a new do!” Jane replied. “That means you have to reevaluate the whole way you dress!”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“Yes! Come on!”</p><p>As Jane pulled El up, the girl wondered what she was getting herself into.</p><p>Literally, in this case.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Look, look, what am I!?” Jane asked, stepping out from the clothing rack wearing an absolutely garish patchwork coat of rainbow patterns.</p><p>“Uh…” El blinked. “A clown?”</p><p>“No, silly, I’m dad in his sixth face!” Jane replied. “But then again… what’s the difference!?”</p><p>El started to laugh too, when suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and both versions of her whipped around to the door.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor called, “Are you in there.”</p><p>El looked to Jane, the woman violently gesturing her hands in a crossing motion. “Yes.”</p><p>Jane almost smacked herself. “Hold on!” She told the Doctor, imitating the inflections of her younger self. “Alright, kid, guess that means I’ve gotta go.”</p><p>“But-“</p><p>“Don’t trust makeup tutorials on the internet, eat three balanced meals a day, and for God’s sake, stay off Twitter!” She ordered, before hitting the button, vanishing in a puff of smoke.</p><p>The Doctor came in a moment later, looking around. “Blimey, this is one hell of a mess…” He commented, looking around at the discarded articles of clothing. He then looked to El. “Did you do something with your hair?”</p><p>El glanced up at the neatly styled mop of hair on her head. “…Yes?”</p><p>“Nice.” The Doctor complimented. “Now, come on, come on, come on!” He hurriedly waved her along, leading her back to the console room.</p><p>“What?” El asked.</p><p>“Sarah Jane said she needed a day to decompress from me, whatever that meant,” The Doctor explained, “So that means we can go wherever we want without her being a spoilsport!”</p><p>El blinked. The Doctor being that giddy could not end well.</p>
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<a name="section0044"><h2>44. The Last Survivor of Earth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“1963!” The Doctor reflected, guiding the TARDIS towards their destination. “Such a good year!”</p><p>“1963…” El repeated curiously. “You said that was when you and Susan went to live on Earth?”</p><p>“Correctomundo!” The Doctor replied. “But that isn’t the only thing! The Beatles! One of the world’s first great pop rock sensations across the world! The genre was just in its infancy at that point, and then they came on the scene, helping to popularize it around the globe. They weren’t just a band; they were the world’s first superstars!”</p><p>El, leaning on the railing, smiled and giggled, the Doctor’s enthusiasm for the subject permeating the very air.</p><p>“And it’s not just the Beatles.” The Doctor continued. “Sean Connery as James Bond! The Kinks, the Rolling Stones… Mary Quant, John Steed, and Cathy Gale!” The TARDIS settled, and the Doctor ran over to the door, looking at El adventurously, as his hand rested on the wood. “Right now, London isn’t just the coolest place on Earth, but the entire galaxy.”</p><p>El smiled in return, as the Doctor opened the door, poking his head out. His excitement quickly turned to horror, as he took sight of the city before them.</p><p>Nelson’s Column was destroyed, the head of the great monument lying on its side in a crater. Trafalgar Square looked like a warzone, the ground having been split open in some parts, cars overturned, buildings reduced to rubble…</p><p>And out in the distance, extended the rest of London, looking much the same, as a blood red sky, polluted from all the smoke and fire, loomed overhead.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor breathed as El stepped out after him, shutting the TARDIS door. “Impossible.”</p><p>“Is this…” El anxiously considered, looking around. “Did we get it wrong?” She trusted that the Doctor knew what he was talking about, and this didn’t look like the coolest place in the galaxy, so that left the other option.</p><p>“There’s no mistake.” The Doctor gulped, looking around. “This is 1963.”</p><p>“But…” El searched. “How?”</p><p>“Something with the power to alter time has done this…” The Doctor considered, looking around. The remnants of a battle long over were scattered around, sandbag blockades, the skeletons of soldiers… the place was devoid of life. “Something on a massive scale…”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at the old newspaper on the ground. “World Ends. Aliens invade… world in a state of terror…” He read. The picture was completely smudged by water damage, so that proved useless.</p><p>“Dad.” El tapped the Doctor on his arm. “Look.” She pointed.</p><p>Across the way was a woman, looking like she had seen better days, running across the square. She ran over to a dynamite igniter, placing her hands on the bar.</p><p>“HUMAN!” One of the alien creatures screeched, coming out of the woodwork. “HALT!”</p><p>“No…” The Doctor breathed. The Earth destroyed, <em>them </em>coming back… It was his worst nightmare come true. “Get down.” He pulled El down as he crouched, looking ahead.</p><p>“THE LAST SURVIVOR OF EARTH WILL BE EXTERMINATED!” The red armored cyborg screeched, taking aim at the woman. “EXTERMINATE!”</p><p>The Daleks were back.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The Dalek proclaimed.</p><p>The woman pressed down the activator, and the dynamite it was connected to exploded, right at the base of the Dalek.</p><p>The Dalek screamed, rolling back, as the woman took off. She ran across the square and pulled up the grate covering a manhole to the underground, jumping inside, before the Dalek’s vision could return.</p><p>El turned to the Doctor. “We have to talk to her.”</p><p>“We do…” The Doctor agreed, biting his lip as he looked around. “Stay close to me at all times, and if you have to talk, whisper.”</p><p>El nodded and allowed the Doctor to take the lead.</p><p>“Going down that manhole might be a bad idea…” The Doctor posited, leading the way around the cracks in the ground. He looked to the destroyed Nelson’s Column, and the taxi at the base of the statue. The Time Lord’s eyes followed the direction it was pointing in towards the nearby underground entrance. “Bingo.” He turned to the girl. “Want to do something about those boards?”</p><p>El nodded and raised her hand. Her eyes narrowed, and she jerked her arm back, the boards splintering into a thousand pieces.</p><p>“Good work.” The Doctor complimented. Checking the area first to make sure the Dalek had resumed its patrol elsewhere, he took El’s hand, moving to the underground entrance.</p><p>“You said Beatles…” El recalled with a grimace as they went down into the underground. “Should’ve known you meant bugs.”</p><p>“Well, it’s either this, or the Daleks.” The Doctor glanced at her. “And they’re more… heavy metal.” The two came to the bottom of the stairs, into a small hallway. “The platform’s just up ahead.” The Doctor reported, sonicing through the gate. “That woman we saw must be around here somewhere…”</p><p>“Don’t move!” The unfamiliar voice suddenly snarled, raising a pipe like a baseball bat.</p><p>“Ah. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear as the old saying goes.” The Doctor tugged his bow tie. “I’m the Doctor, this is my daughter El. Don’t worry, we’re here to help you.”</p><p>The dark-skinned woman’s eyes narrowed dangerously, as she kept the pipe raised. “How can I trust you?”</p><p>El scowled. “Do I look like a Dalek? Do I have a telescope coming out of my head?”</p><p>“Sarcasm, that’s sarcasm, I haven’t been teaching you sarcasm…” The Doctor muttered. “Anyway,” He turned to the woman, “My daughter here is right. We’re not Daleks, miss…?”</p><p>“Sylvia.” The woman introduced herself.</p><p>“Sylvia,” The Doctor pointed, “What happened? How long have the Daleks been here?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Sylvia incredulously asked. “How can’t you know!? They overran the Earth, the whole planet!”</p><p>“We’re travelers.” El shrugged.</p><p>“Yes, we’ve been a bit out of the loop as it were.” The Doctor agreed. “Now, tell us, Sylvia, what happened?”</p><p>“…They came out of the sky.” Sylvia began, staring blankly into space. “Like they tore a crack in it… thousands and thousands of Daleks, maybe millions… so many they blotted out the sun.” She shook herself out of it and looked back to the Doctor.</p><p>“How did you survive?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“The Daleks went for the militaries first.” Sylvia answered. “The ordinary people tried to use that time to scatter but… as far as I know, I’m the last one left.”</p><p>El raised an eyebrow. “Just you?”</p><p>“I may not be a soldier, but I’m clever.” Sylvia replied. “Clever’s just about the only thing you can fight them with. And, it’s easier now… most of the Daleks went back to wherever they came from. The only ones left here now are to find me.”</p><p>“The last survivor of Earth…” The Doctor recalled. “That Dalek on the surface called you that.”</p><p>“Well, it was wrong, wasn’t it?” Sylvia looked between the two. “There’s you two. Maybe that means there are other survivors somewhere else.”</p><p>“But, the Daleks can’t do this!” The Doctor worriedly stated. “They’ve never had the power to change history like this, not even during the Time War!”</p><p>Sylvia looked incredulously at the Doctor. “What are you talking about?”</p><p>“Listen to me, Sylvia, this?” The Doctor gestured around. “Was never supposed to happen. The Daleks never invaded Earth in 1963. I have to find out whatever they did to make this happen and fix it.”</p><p>Sylvia let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. “Look, it isn’t safe to stay here. If you want to keep alive, you have to keep moving.” Her head turned to the far end of the tunnel. “Let me look on ahead. These tunnels are slaughtering grounds.”</p><p>Something crumbled at the other end, and the three’s heads snapped in that direction.</p><p>“What was that?” El asked, standing close by the Doctor.</p><p>A Dalek effortlessly hovered over a pile of rubble, touching down on the other side.</p><p>“Things just got more dangerous!” The Doctor grabbed El’s hand, jumping off the platform behind a barricade, hiding from the Dalek’s view, as Sylvia sprinted down the tracks, into the tunnel. “Looks like Sylvia’s made it… We’re going to have to sneak behind that Dalek.”</p><p>“Let me-“ El began, trying to stand.</p><p>The Doctor yanked her back down. “The Daleks are purpose-designed to kill Time Lords, and our psychic powers were next to none. You won’t be able to put a dent in it. Stay down, follow me, be quiet… We’re going to have to try and sneak past. Hold on…”</p><p>The Doctor closed his eyes. For an organism unused to the way Time Lords perceived the world, the best way to describe what the Doctor was experiencing was a view of the area from over his own head. Disorienting to most three-dimensional organisms, but not for the Doctor.</p><p>Not even having to look over the barricade, the Doctor waited for the Dalek to move past.</p><p>“Okay, come on…” The Doctor whispered to El, keeping his eyes closed but still able to see perfectly, as he took her hand, and followed closely behind the Dalek. It was doing a sweep with simple visual scans only, child’s play to hide from.</p><p>Following the Dalek down the tracks, the Doctor and El hid behind another barricade. The Dalek finally turned around again, and proceeded back, exiting the Doctors field of view.</p><p>The Time Lord’s eyes popped back open. “Come on.” He took El’s hand, leading her the rest of the way to where Sylvia was hiding.</p><p>“Stop.” Sylvia held her hand in front of the Doctor. “The track is electrified.” She stated, pointing to the rails which were sparking from contact with dripping water from the roof of the tunnel.</p><p>The Doctor huffed, rolling his eyes, as he went to the power junction just on the adjacent wall. Quickly sonicing the junction box, he began pulling out the wires haphazardly, the lights dimming slightly, as the sparking tracks died. “Go, go, go.” He hurried.</p><p>Sylvia took the lead down the tunnel first, sprinting into a nearby access door at the end. The edges of the doorframe were lined with dynamite, and El and the Doctor took great care not to accidentally knock it off as they proceeded through.</p><p>“Up you go first, El.” The Doctor guided her.</p><p>The girl pushed up the manhole cover with her mind and proceeded to climb out first.</p><p>“I just need to set this trap…” Sylvia bit her lip, as she connected up a tripwire.</p><p>“Hurry.” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>So absorbed the woman was in setting her trap, she’d failed to notice the mechanical whirring, and the shadow falling on the wall, as the Dalek came into their section of the tunnel.</p><p>“Sylvia!” The Doctor shouted in alarm.</p><p>The Dalek pivoted around entirely, looking down at Sylvia. “EXTERMINATE!”</p><p>“Run, Doctor!” Sylvia screamed, tripping the wire herself.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor shouted, as the Dalek fired upon the woman.</p><p>The woman’s skeleton glowed through her body, as she fell to the ground, dead.</p><p>The fuses of the TNT began nearing the end, as the Doctor scrambled up the ladder, placing the cover back on the manhole.</p><p>El looked anxiously at the Doctor as the Time Lord stood upon it, and the ground shuddered as the explosion below hopefully destroyed the Dalek.</p><p>“They…” El swallowed. “Killed her.”</p><p>The Doctor sighed, looking at El. “We have to get back to the TARDIS.</p><p>In the short time the two had been underground, the Daleks had changed their patrol patterns. Climbing over an overturned cab in one of the pits, the Doctor gingerly led El through a formation of Daleks, weaving through them at just the right times as not to be spotted.</p><p>Finally making it back to the ship, the Doctor kicked the door open, and ushered El inside first, hurrying in after her, and taking off immediately after.</p><p>The Doctor set the TARDIS into temporal orbit, moving the ship into the time vortex but not out of the current time zone, and set to work.</p><p>He had to find out where the Daleks had come from. Only then might he be able to figure out how they’d been able to change history so severely, and how to reverse it. Sylvia had mentioned millions of Daleks, just appearing out of the sky… That many Daleks all moving at once, all to the same place in time, it’d create an enormous wake. One that the Doctor should be able to track back to the point of origin.</p><p>As the Doctor worked, however, he didn’t notice as El began to sweat, clutching her head in pain, as she flopped back into one of the seats.</p><p>“Dad…” El groaned.</p><p>The Doctor whipped around to her, concerned. “El?”</p><p>The girl coughed, like a cigarette smoker.</p><p>The Doctor looked her over. “Don’t worry, El, it’s fine… You’re going to be fine.”</p><p>El stopped coughing, and looked up, the pain suddenly having vanished. “Dad… what was that?”</p><p>The Doctor didn’t offer her a straight answer as he turned back to the scanner. “Don’t worry, El, if I can find the time and place from where the Daleks have done this, I can fix it.”</p><p>“But… I don’t get it.” El spoke up. “If everybody on Earth was killed in 1963… why am I still here?”</p><p>“…The TARDIS is protecting you.” The Doctor answered. “But it won’t last forever.” He turned back, as the scanner finally spat out a result. “Oh, of course… where else would it be?”</p><p>“What is it?” El looked up.</p><p>“Skaro.” The Doctor gravely answered. “The homeworld of the Daleks.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS rematerialized in a moderately-sized storeroom, the Doctor and El stepping out into the sheening metal room.</p><p>El jumped, as she caught sight of the Dalek dome on a container.</p><p>“It’s alright.” The Doctor knocked on the empty dome. “Nobody’s home.” The Time Lord glanced over to the nearby window, and stood up, walking over. “Looks like they’ve been rebuilding this place too…” He commented.</p><p>Out into the distance, into a landscape perpetually covered in an orange mist, like the entire place was forever blazing, was a city, filled with buildings that almost resembled the Daleks themselves, rounded cones, cylinders, and spires, with a heavy emphasis on spheres on the sides.</p><p>“Rebuilding?” El repeated. “You’ve been here before?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded solemnly. “Kalaann… the City of the Daleks. I came here once, a long, long time ago, with Susan… But now…” The Doctor looked around. “The Daleks have rebuilt the place.”</p><p>Thunder rumbled outside, as droplets of liquid pelted the window.</p><p>“Did I mention, a nuclear war went down here thousands of years ago, it constantly rains, and the rain is pure sulfuric acid?”</p><p>El blinked. “Not a nice place.”</p><p>“No, definitely not.” The Doctor agreed. “Come on. We need to find the source of the Daleks’ time manipulation and put things back on their proper course.” He turned to the abandoned dome. “Let me just grab the security sensor out of this…” The Doctor said, pulling the dome apart with the sonic screwdriver. “The Daleks have beefed up their security so anything without a Dalek security sensor can’t access their doors.” He explained.</p><p>El suddenly coughed doubling over. “Dad, I don’t…” She said, as her entire body began to flicker transparently. “Dad!?”</p><p>“Hold on, El, just hold on…” The Doctor replied, as El solidified again.</p><p>“What was that?” The girl fearfully asked, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>“Time is finally catching up with you.” The Doctor informed sadly. “I told you… the TARDIS couldn’t protect you forever… There should be enough spare parts around here to build you a chronon blocker. That should counteract the effects long enough for me to fix the problem.”</p><p>“Okay.” El nodded.</p><p>“Stay here and save your strength.” The Doctor ordered, moving toward the door. “I’ll be back in a tick.”</p><p>“Wait, you don’t-“</p><p>“I said around here.” The Doctor glanced back to her. “I didn’t mean the storeroom. We’re near the Daleks’ production facility. They’ll have the materials I need. Wait here.”</p><p>“What about the Daleks?” El asked.</p><p>“Don’t worry…” The Doctor replied. “I’ll be fine. You stay.”</p><p>El nodded, as the Doctor stepped out of the storeroom, leaving her on her own.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0045"><h2>45. City of the Daleks</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Making his way to the production line first, the Doctor slowly skulked along, crouched down, as Daleks patrolled the room.</p><p>Empty crimson casings, the new standard for the Daleks in the New Paradigm, were carried along by arms on rails overhead, periodically stopping to have components added.</p><p>Darting into a room just off the line, the Doctor climbed over some storage crates, through a gap that the incomplete casings moved through. Jumping down into the next room, the Doctor found scrap casings from some of the ancient Dalek models simply sitting there.</p><p>“Looks like the Daleks are a bit behind on the recycling…” The Doctor remarked, as he reached into one of the casings, pulling out a small crystal only the size of his fingernail. Kontron crystals, in the most simplest of terms, were crystalized artron energy, found only in some parts of the time vortex. They maintained a constant link to the time vortex, drawing energy, and were what the Daleks used to power themselves around the period of the Time War.</p><p>The crystal’s properties would be useful in the chronon blocker, but that still left another component.</p><p>“Now, a Dalekanium coil…”</p><p>Moving back into the production line, the Doctor followed it to the end of the closed loop-shaped room, entering through the door at the end.</p><p>Coming to a similar junction to the one near the TARDIS, the Doctor entered to an almost identical storeroom, looking around inside.</p><p>The Doctor examined the contents of the place, before finding a small, ring shaped piece of metal.</p><p>“Ah, I knew I’d find one in here. Daleks are so easily predictable.” The Doctor shook his head. “Now, to get the chronon blocker assembled…”</p><p>It wasn’t anything too complex to do, just take a length of wire, wrapping it around the crystal, before connecting the wire to the coil. The Dalekanium’s properties would naturally amplify the field generated by the crystal, creating a field strong enough to shield a full-size human from temporal changes, never mind a child.</p><p>With the device assembled, the Doctor hurried back to El.</p><p>------------</p><p>“There.” The Doctor gently put the chronon blocker onto El’s wrist like a bracelet. “How’s that?”</p><p>“Better.” El stated. “Don’t feel sick anymore.”</p><p>“Well, Doctors do tend to do that.” The Doctor smiled satisfactorily. “Now, whatever the Daleks are using to alter history is likely to be in this city, but where… Searching the entire place on foot would take too long, and using the TARDIS to scan would tip them off immediately…” The Time Lord suddenly snapped his fingers. “The Daleks have a visualizer room; it should be just down the way. Come on, El.”</p><p>The girl nodded and let the Doctor take the lead out of the room. Taking a right, the two proceeded through the door into the next room. An orange scientist Dalek was currently running experiments in the place, missing the Doctor and El only because there were screens blocking them.</p><p>The Doctor waited for the Dalek to turn to the other experiment, before he dashed across, pulling El along, into the room off to the side.</p><p>“Here we are, the visualizer room.” The Doctor stood up as the door closed behind them.</p><p>The room was rather large, filled with databanks that hummed with activity, and on the main wall was a massive, spherical Dalek eye, doing a sweep of the room itself.</p><p>“The Daleks use this place to catalogue Dalek activity from all across the universe.” The Doctor explained. “Think of it as a records office, invasions, stratagems, anything and everything the Daleks have done over the years. It’s why they almost never try the same plan twice.”</p><p>“So, what are we looking for?” El asked.</p><p>“That.” He pointed to a console by the giant eye. “But the visualizer eye will alert the Daleks as soon as we get in sight…” The Doctor frowned, as he thought. “There’re security consoles around here that I might be able to use to deactivate the eye.” He pointed. “Those databanks should be good enough cover, let’s move.”</p><p>El nodded, and let the Doctor take the lead again.</p><p>Throughout the room, there were three consoles that needed to be shut down. Moving to the closest first, the Doctor shut it down first. The beam from the visualizer eye narrowed in response and sped up. Sneaking to the other side of the room, the Doctor reconfigured the next console, and the eye sped up once more.</p><p>Finally, the two snuck down to the console at the very base of the visualizer eye. Reconfiguring the console, the eye ceased its movements, becoming just another screen set into the wall.</p><p>“Right-o… let’s see what we can see…” The Doctor tapped a few series of commands into the console, the screen on the visualizer eye changing to show a massive, multi-level room, filled with Daleks. “That’s the Daleks’ Supreme Council chambers, and look…” He pointed to the unique construct sat on a platform.</p><p>It looked like someone had taken a Dalek dome and attached a tank to the bottom, allowing the mutant to float around inside, while three massive shields with sensor globes on them were attached to the tank with hydraulic arms.</p><p>“The Dalek Eternal.” The Doctor recognized the gold plating. “With the Emperor dead and the Supreme off world, he’s the next highest authority on the planet. Looks like he’s had a bit of an upgrade too.”</p><p>The view changed, showing a four-pronged structure in the council chamber, projecting a green energy field around something.</p><p>“That,” The Doctor pointed, “Is what I am more interested in.”</p><p>El looked to the Time Lord. “Is that what the Daleks used to change time?”</p><p>“I’m not a betting man, but I’d wager every last penny I have.” The Doctor replied. The thing on the screen looked... well, the Doctor couldn’t see it clearly, but it <em>felt</em> powerful… and familiar. The sonic screwdriver bleeped, and the Doctor flicked it open. Whatever the Daleks had obtained, it was trying to communicate. “Temporal coordinates, interesting.”</p><p>“How do we get in there with all those Daleks?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Knock politely.”</p><p>El frowned. “What?”</p><p>“Come on,” The Doctor took her hand once more, leading her out the door. Sneaking past the same Scientist still running its experiments, the two entered the nearby lift, and the Doctor pressed the button to send it up.</p><p>“Where are we going?” El inquired.</p><p>“To the Supreme Council chambers.” The Doctor told her seriously. “The heart of the Dalek Empire. Now, no matter what happens, keep calm. I’ll be right there with you.”</p><p>El nodded, as the lift stopped, and the doors slid open.</p><p>Two Dalek Drones were already there, waiting for them. “HALT!” One of the drones ordered. “YOU WILL BE TAKEN TO THE DALEK ETERNAL!”</p><p>“Well, what a stroke of luck.” The Doctor clasped his hands together. “Take me to your leader.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Dalek Drones led El and the Doctor into the Supreme Council chambers, up the massive ramp to the titanic Dalek sitting on a platform. In the center of the room, above the glowing green field being generated by the four pylons, a capsule, Dalek in design it appeared, floated, radiating cosmic power only whispered about in legend.</p><p>“DOCTOR…” The Dalek Eternal addressed as El and the Doctor came to a stop on its platform.</p><p>“Ah, you remember me.” The Doctor replied. “Good. It’s been quite some time since World War Two era London. And speaking of London… Have you got the first <em>idea</em> of what you’re messing with!?”</p><p>“I, DOCTOR, AM THE DALEK ETERNAL!” It proclaimed. “MY PURPOSE IS TO ENSURE THE DESTINY OF THE DALEKS!”</p><p>“No, you have to stop this, now!” The Doctor insisted furiously. “The laws of time can only bend so much! You have no idea what you’ll unleash!”</p><p>“THE LAWS OF TIME ARE NOW THE DALEKS’ TO CONTROL.” The Dalek Eternal proclaimed.</p><p>“You can’t <em>control </em>the laws of time!” The Doctor retorted. “They’re the ultimate rule in the universe, they’re too powerful, the Time Lords made sure of that!”</p><p>“POWER, DOCTOR?” The Eternal retorted. “BEHOLD, DOCTOR, <em>TRUE</em> POWER! BEHOLD THE MIGHT OF THE DALEKS!”</p><p>A mechanical whirring activated behind them, and the Doctor and El turned around, to see the container hovering in the air opening up.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor breathed in horror, as he felt the power spilling out. “No. No!”</p><p>“Dad… what is it?” El asked as the container opened fully.</p><p>There, suspended on its own in the air, haloed in light, was a glowing glass cube, that had looked like it had once been split into six segments, with a platinum rod protruding from the top.</p><p>“El…” The Doctor gulped. “This… is the Key to Time. More powerful than the heart of the TARDIS. More powerful than any Time Lord. More powerful than any Celestial… more powerful than anything. With that key in your possession… you don’t need a time machine to change time. You just think it, and it becomes so… I thought it was lost. We all did.”</p><p>“Lost?” El turned to the Doctor.</p><p>“The Time War was destructive, so destructive that even the beings above the Time Lords, the Celestials, were consumed by it.” The Doctor explained. “But before they died, the Black Guardian and the White Guardian put aside their eternal rivalry and hid the Key so that neither the Daleks nor Time Lords could use it as a weapon.”</p><p>“THE DALEKS FOUND IT.” The Eternal stated. “IT IS OURS TO COMMAND NOW… ALONG WITH THE TOTAL MASTERY OF TIME AND SPACE! THIS, DOCTOR, IS THE NEW DESTINY OF THE DALEKS! AN ETERNAL EMPIRE, INFINITE, UNENDING!”</p><p>“Ah, so that’s why you’re called the Eternal.” The Doctor finally worked out. “That’s been bugging me for a while now. It’s just a fancy way of saying. ‘Dalek Time Strategist.’”</p><p>“SOON, DOCTOR, THE DALEKS SHALL BECOME THE NEW LORDS OF TIME… AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP IT!”</p><p>“Over my dead body.” The Doctor hissed. He quickly produced the sonic screwdriver, and pressed the button, a power conduit on the Eternal’s body beginning to glow as it overloaded.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The Eternal ordered.</p><p>“Come along, El!” He grabbed the girl, pulling her along.</p><p>The Daleks scrambled to fire upon the Doctor, as the Time Lord took a running jump off the platform.</p><p>“Geronimo!”</p><p>The Doctor’s hand made contact with the Key to Time, and in a flash of light, he and El were gone.</p><p>-----------</p><p>In a flash of light, two screaming figures appeared in the Supreme Council chamber of the Daleks, falling to the floor.</p><p>“Ow…” The Doctor stood up, rubbing his head. “El, are you alright?”</p><p>“Fine.” The girl shook her head, hair somehow staying tidy, as she got up as well. “Where are we?” She asked.</p><p>The Doctor looked around the room, the council chambers destroyed and long abandoned. “Those temporal coordinates… The Key itself sent them to me.” The Doctor guessed. “This is Kalaann, before the Daleks came back.”</p><p>El frowned. “Why didn’t it just stop the Daleks itself, then?”</p><p>“The Key is only semi-sapient.” The Doctor explained. “It can send coordinates, but to change time or send things through it, it needs a living being.” The Doctor glanced around, before walking over to the field projector that, in the future, had been holding the key.</p><p>The Doctor popped open the panel and began fiddling around inside.</p><p>“What are you doing?” El inquired.</p><p>“Setting a trap.” The Doctor answered. “The Eternal isn’t likely going to let us go that easily.” He activated the field generator, watching and waiting before a squadron of Daleks materialized right in the field.</p><p>The alien creatures screamed as they exploded.</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “See, not so-“ He turned to El.</p><p>The girl was flickering again.</p><p>“D-Dad, I don’t…”</p><p>“Shh,” The Doctor tried to put his arms around her. “We’ve jumped time again so the field strength is weakened. Don’t worry, El, I can fix this. We just need to stop the Daleks. Let’s head back to the visualizer room.”</p><p>Walking back to the lift, the Doctor and El narrowly dodged the sting of a Varga plant, before entering the next section of the corridor.</p><p>The Doctor hit the button to send for the lift, and as they waited, El looked out to the destroyed city.</p><p>The girl tilted her head, at the massive words etched into the ground, buildings reduced to rubble all around them. “’No More…’” She read. “What does that mean?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced over to her. “It was a message. To the Daleks and the Time Lords at the end of the war.”</p><p>El nodded slowly. “Who put it there?”</p><p>“…I did.” The Doctor reluctantly admitted, as the lift finally arrived. He took the lead in, waiting for El, before sending it down.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“RESTORE KALAANN! PREPARE TO ACTIVATE THE KEY TO TIME!” The Platinum-colored Dalek, surrounded by its maroon underlings, ordered as they flew in formation, the Key to Time being carried with them.</p><p>“The Supreme Dalek…” The Doctor shook his head as he watched the feed from the visualizer eye. “Who else would it be?”</p><p>“What do we do?” El fearfully asked, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>“Well, get the Key to Time from the Daleks, disperse it before they can use it to steamroll Earth, time gets put back in its proper place, and my daughter gets born.” The Doctor outlined.</p><p>“Okay…” El looked to the screen. “How are we going to get past them?”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor shrugged theatrically. “Like I don’t have a plan?” The Time Lord soniced the screen, the visualizer eye exploding, and a mechanical component fell out. “This is linked to the eye of every Dalek.” He explained, picking up the small sphere. “Constantly receiving feeds from Daleks all over the universe. Now, I can reverse-engineer it so it’ll blind them, but…”</p><p>“But what?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor sighed. “I need more parts. And I need to work as fast as possible, given we don’t know how much time we have to work with.”</p><p>“…oh.” El sighed. “I see.”</p><p>“I know, it’s dangerous.” The Doctor told her. “But you’re more capable than any other human child in existence. Besides, the only things you’re liable to encounter in there are Varga plants. Easy to dodge.”</p><p>“Right.” El nodded. “What do you need?”</p><p>“A Dalek gun, and a Dalek eyestalk.” The Doctor told her, as she walked over to the door. “Needless to say, don’t try going after live ones. Good luck!” He wished as the door opened. “I know you can do it!”</p><p>El nodded as the door shut behind her, and the Doctor set to work, sighing.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El walked through the corridors, flickering unsteadily as she walked. Moving through a door, she spotted a bit of movement out of the corner of her eye, and looked, jumping into the air.</p><p>A Varga plant was <em>right there</em>, and she would’ve had been bitten the second she got close, only…</p><p>El looked down at her hand, as it returned solid, and she moved past the plant.</p><p>“Hmm…” She looked to the alien flora. “Couldn’t see me.”</p><p>She could use that. Flickering between solid color and being completely see-through, El moved as fast as she could, past the Varga plants, and past the Daleks, stopping out of sight whenever she returned to color.</p><p>Spotting a dome on the ruined floor, El pulled the eyestalk out of it, and proceeded forth.</p><p>Dodging more Daleks and Varga plants, El came to the end of the ruined production line, where there was a half-completed Dalek case lying on the floor.</p><p>Pulling the gun off, El looked to the two items, and hurried back to the Doctor.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah, brilliant, there you are.” The Doctor sighed, as El entered the room. “I was just starting to get worried.”</p><p>The girl smiled proudly, holding out the two items for the Doctor to take.</p><p>“And you’ve got both of them, fantastic!” He complimented. “Now we can get this thing completed!”</p><p>After but a minute of hurriedly soldering together wires with the sonic screwdriver, the Doctor stood up, holding the completed device.</p><p>“There.” The Time Lord stated satisfactorily. “Our very own Dalek Visual Disruptor. Hm… the range on it is limited. But, if we were to put it in something sufficiently big enough, something connected to enough Daleks like… the old Emperor’s casing… why, that’d be enough to blind every Dalek in the city!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Easier said than done.” The Doctor gulped, looking into the room filled with Daleks. “We’re running out of time.”</p><p>“PREPARE TO ACTIVATE THE KEY!” The Dalek Supreme ordered, as it began to hover above the generator.</p><p>“Dad,” El turned to the Doctor, “Give it to me.”</p><p>“What!?” The Doctor spluttered. “No!”</p><p>“They won’t see me.” She told him, flickering. “I can <em>do </em>this.”</p><p>“…yes.” The Doctor sighed, handing it over. “You can. El? Be safe.”</p><p>The girl nodded, and holding onto the device tightly, she began the sprint across the council chambers. Passing by far too many Daleks for the Doctor’s comfort, El ran up the ramp on the wall, up to the ancient Dalek Emperor’s casing, the one that had been there before the Eternal had taken its place.</p><p>Climbing into the inactive shell, El connected the top of the visual disruptor to the visual systems of the Emperor’s casing. With a pulse of light, all hell proceeded to break loose.</p><p>“MY VISION IS IMPAIRED I CANNOT SEE!” Every Dalek in the chamber screeched in unison, beginning to fire off wildly.</p><p>“Oh, great, I forgot the Daleks with ballistic with those things when they were blinded!” The Doctor berated himself. “Get a grip, Doctor, all you have to do is destroy the field generator holding the Key in place while the Daleks light up the place brighter than a drunk American on independence day, easy!” Taking a breath, the Time Lord launched himself into a sprint, ducking and weaving between the blasts.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted down.</p><p>“Stay up there!” The Doctor ordered. “I’m about to blow this place sky-high!”</p><p>Sliding under a blast to the console, the Doctor applied the sonic screwdriver, and immediately, one of the pylons went up.</p><p>Alarms began to blare as the Doctor darted between more Dalek gunfire, running up the ramp.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted in relief.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor hefted her onto his shoulders. “Let’s go!”</p><p>Sprinting again towards the Key to Time, the Doctor leapt off the platform, and reached out with a hand.</p><p>“GERONIMO!”</p><p>With a flash of brilliant white light, the Doctor and El vanished from the Dalek Council Chambers, as the generator holding the Key to Time went up in flames, blowing the roof off the building.</p><p>-----------</p><p>In one last flash, the Doctor and El appeared, standing outside the TARDIS. The storeroom, which had been repaired when they arrived, was ruined again, the entire city in a state of disrepair.</p><p>“Ah, now that’s what I call door-to-door.” The Doctor chuckled at his own terrible joke, as he held the Key to Time in his hands. “Steady, steady,” He recommended, as El hopped down from his shoulders.</p><p>“I’m fine.” The girl looked to her solid form, before removing the chronon blocker. “We did it!”</p><p>“That we did!” The Doctor beamed as well. “Look, this is Kalaann as it should be.” The Doctor gestured around. “Key to Time-free. The Daleks are probably going to come back again, but…” The Doctor examined the Key. “Something tells me the Eternal’s probably not going to be a part of it anymore.”</p><p>El nodded. “Good. What about Earth?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled knowingly, pushing the TARDIS door open with his foot.</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“Mum, stop being such a square, will you?”</em> Sylvia, on the TARDIS monitor, unaware that she was being observed, spoke into the phone of a telephone box. <em>“It’s only ten o’clock, I can look after myself you know. So what if I am late? It’s not the end of the world.”</em></p><p>The Doctor flicked the switch, the monitor turning off, before he turned to El. “See? All’s well that ends well.”</p><p>El smiled, hugging the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord blinked. “What’s this for?”</p><p>“Nothing.” The girl shrugged. “It just feels nice.” She pulled back from the Doctor, looking to the glass cube in the seat. “What about that?”</p><p>“Oh, that?” The Doctor replied. “I would hide it somewhere out there, but in all likelihood, that would just mean someone with bad taste in how history <em>should </em>be is going to find it again… I can whip up a nice little room for it here in the TARDIS. At least, that way, the Key to Time is kept out of the wrong hands. Well, anybody’s hands, really. Now,” He suddenly smiled again. “Isn’t there a Beatles show we’re supposed to be attending?”</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0046"><h2>46. The Thing From Another World</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor and El stood in the TARDIS console room, the ship drifting aimlessly through the time vortex, as the Doctor performed air guitar about as theatrically as he could, as a song played from the gramophone in the console.</p><p>“…He could never quite get his fingers around g sharp, though.” The Doctor finished miming as Elvis’s Promised Land reached its end. “Ah…” The Doctor smiled. “Elvis, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Croce, David Bowie, Freddy Mercury, me on drums, you should’ve seen it! The lot of us and the Rock Battle to Save the Universe! Woo, watch out!” The Doctor danced around the console, stopping in his tracks as he caught the flashing red light on the console. “How long’s that been going?”</p><p>El shrugged. “No clue.” She looked to the Doctor. “What does it mean?”</p><p>“Someone’s sending a distress signal.” The Doctor answered, setting the controls.</p><p>“What, to the TARDIS?”</p><p>“More like anybody passing, probably.” The Doctor replied. “Generally, people aren’t choosy about who rescues them. Here we go…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS materialized deep in an icy cavern, the air cold and wet. The door opened and the Doctor stepped out first onto the ice, followed by El.</p><p>“Brrr…” The girl shivered. “Cold.”</p><p>“Don’t worry, the TARDIS’s heat shielding will kick in in a moment.” The Doctor said.</p><p>El nodded and looked around. “Where are we?”</p><p>“Somewhere in the arctic circle.” The Doctor answered, examining the area. Just a few feet ahead, a skidoo balanced precariously on the ledge, sections of ice looking like they had fallen out from underneath it. “Now, that signal wasn’t too strong, whatever was sending it has to be nearby…”</p><p>The icy floor began to rumble, the two struggling to maintain their balance.</p><p>“Ah, earthquake!” El looked around in alarm, before the shaking stopped.</p><p>“Just a little glacial movement…” The Doctor told her.</p><p>El huffed, crossing her arms. “Still slippery.”</p><p>The Doctor felt around the walls of ice, examining the natural structures closely. “From the look of these, I’d say we’re on some sort of floating ice plateau.” He theorized, moving back from the wall. “How’s about a quick look around? See if we can’t work out what happened?”</p><p>El nodded, watching the Doctor closely. “Be careful.” She ordered, as the Doctor walked over to the skidoo hanging halfway off the ledge.</p><p>The Time Lord looked the vehicle over. “Ah, a satnav.” He removed the device. “Could be useful if we need to track this back to where it came from.” He said, placing it into his pocket, before looking over the edge. Down at the bottom was a man dressed in winter gear, lying on the ground. “Ah, El, I think I’ve found our rider.”</p><p>The girl walked over to the Doctor’s side, warily looking over the side as well.</p><p>The Doctor turned to El. “Think you can get me down there? I should probably look him over before we try to move him.”</p><p>El nodded and held out her hand. The Doctor slowly floated off the ice, over the edge, before slowly falling to the icy floor below.</p><p>“Ah, not as bad as I feared.” The Doctor brushed a little speck off his jacket, before giving the girl a thumbs-up. With that, the Time Lord turned to examine the driver. The name Chisolm was embroidered on his jacket, the man himself lying unconscious on the floor.</p><p>His breathing was shallow, and he was cold, too cold. The Doctor needed to get some warmth into this guy’s system, fast.</p><p>Looking around, the Doctor spotted a bag lying nearby. Rooting around inside, the Doctor found exactly the thing he was looking for. “Ah, a Mess Caddie. Every arctic explorer’s essential.” Popping off the top, the Doctor looked inside, and frowned. “Empty… that skidoo was a short-range vehicle, so he could’ve run out of supplies, or… maybe he was in such a hurry, he didn’t have time to prepare proper provisions.” He considered.</p><p>Luckily, there was a little stream of flowing water nearby. Tasting it with his finger to make sure it wasn’t saltwater, the Doctor proceeded to fill the Caddie up, before reaching into his pockets for something else.</p><p>Popping a teabag into the water, the Doctor soniced the container, heating it up.</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor knelt by the man’s side, holding the container up to his mouth. “Drink up…”</p><p>As the Doctor tilted the container back, the man began to reflexively take in the hot tea, before his eyes popped open fully, and he looked around, before sitting up.</p><p>“Where…?” The man clutched his head. “Where am I?”</p><p>“You fell.” The Doctor answered, running a quick medical scan with the screwdriver. “It looks like your ankle is sprained, but I’ll soon get you out of here, don’t worry.” He said, helping Chisolm stand upright. “How are you feeling?”</p><p>“…My ankle’s not good…” Chisolm grimaced in pain. “But I can manage.”</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor nodded, looking up. “Alright, El, bring us up, carefully!”</p><p>The girl nodded and held out both of her hands. The Doctor and Chisolm began to float up slowly, the man gasping in shock, as they were pulled up, and gently deposited on the ground near the TARDIS.</p><p>“Ahh, ah!” Chisolm staggered.</p><p>“Right, sorry about that.” The Time Lord apologized. “But it really is one of the safest ways to travel. I’m the Doctor, this is El. And you would be… Chisolm?”</p><p>The man nodded. “Yes… that’s right.”</p><p>“Lovely, Chisolm.” The Doctor smiled. “Now, if you would just like to tell us where your base is-“</p><p>“No!” The man quickly shouted. “No! I can’t go back there!”</p><p>The Doctor recoiled in surprise. “Why not?”</p><p>“Waiting… they were waiting!” He hyperventilated, trying to move away.</p><p>“Dad… he’s scared.” El whispered to the Doctor.</p><p>“Not just scared… Terrified.” The Doctor’s eyebrows knit together as Chisolm dove to the ground, quivering in fear. Something that could make a grown man <em>that </em>scared… Must’ve been horrible. “Well, he’s not going to tell us where he came from now.”</p><p>“So, we have to look for it.” El groaned.</p><p>“Not necessarily.” The Doctor smiled, holding up the satnav he’d taken from the skidoo.</p><p>-------------</p><p>Gently laying the catatonic man on the floor, the Doctor walked up the steps to the control console. Plugging a USB cable from the console into the port on the satnav, the Time Lord waited as the TARDIS pulled the coordinates automatically, before flashing them across the screen.</p><p>“Bingo!” The Doctor satisfactorily clapped his hands. “We have the coordinates.” He turned to El. “Now, to see what’s got poor Chisolm in such a state.”</p><p>“You sure that’s a good idea?” El turned to the Doctor.</p><p>“Of course it is.” The Time Lord replied. “Why wouldn’t it be?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Oh,” The Doctor poked his head out, looking at the yard of a snowcapped base. “I like it here. Very ‘The Thing.’”</p><p>“What thing?” El inquired.</p><p>“Horror movie.” The Doctor answered. “I’ll let you watch it when you get older.”</p><p>“You…” Chisolm breathed, horrified, as he stepped out after them. “You brought me back… They’ll get us all!”</p><p>“No they won’t.” The Doctor turned to Chisolm. “You have my word. I can help, I promise.”</p><p>“How!?” Chisolm demanded. “They got everybody! They-They… They changed them!”</p><p>El frowned. “Changed who into what?”</p><p>“My friends, the people running this base…” Chisolm recalled. “Into… robots. Slaves.” He gulped. “Cyber-Slaves.”</p><p>The Doctor inhaled. “Cyber-Slaves?”</p><p>Chisolm opened his mouth to speak again, but something small and silver, only about the size of a mouse and shaped like a computer mouse, jumped onto his shoulder, biting him in the neck.</p><p>“Augh!” Chisholm threw the silver thing off him, into the snow.</p><p>“El, back!” The Doctor pushed her away, as the little silver mouse tried to scurry off.</p><p>“What is this?” El questioned, grasping onto it with her mind, bringing it back over, before crushing it.</p><p>“A Cyber-Mat…” The Doctor frowned, poking the destroyed bit of tech. “Servants of the Cybermen.”</p><p>El frowned. “What men?”</p><p>“Cybermen… they used to be people, a long time ago.” The Doctor explained. “Earth used to have this twin planet, called Mondas, with humans living on it too. But when the planet was flung out of the solar system, the people on it were forced to find new ways to survive. They started replacing their body parts with technology. Hearts with pumps, lungs with air converters, nerves with circuitry… until, eventually, they became nothing more than brains in suits of armor.”</p><p>El gasped. “That sounds… horrible.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded in agreement. “Anyway, the Cybermen use Cyber-Mats as covert drones, little spies that can get into places nobody else can. They normally kill by feeding on brainwaves, but biting people? That isn’t their standard MO.” He put the broken Cyber-Mat into his pocket, and turned to Chisolm. “Here, let me take a look.”</p><p>“No!” Chisolm staggered back. “Back away! Get away from me! And get away from here!”</p><p>“Chisolm, you have to let me help you.” The Doctor tried to approach.</p><p>Chisolm shoved him to the ground. “It’s too late for me now!” He ran awfully fast for someone with a sprained ankle, into the security tower, the door sealing shut behind him.</p><p>“What’d he do that for?” El wondered, as the Doctor got up. “Why’s he acting like that?”</p><p>“I think the answer to that…” The Doctor looked to the large dome, the main building of the outpost with the letters GSO emblazoned on the surface. “Is in there.” He turned to El. “Come along, El.”</p><p>He led the way over to the central dome, walking over to the outer door for the airlock.</p><p>“No key.” El remarked, looking at the keycard reader by the door’s side.</p><p>The Doctor smiled smugly. “That’s easy.” Taking the sonic screwdriver from his pocket, he pointed it at the door, and pressed the button.</p><p>The door slid open, and the Doctor and El jumped back, away from the figure already standing in the airlock.</p><p>It was wearing only a loose jumpsuit, hands coated in grey rubber and silver plating, head imprisoned in a metal mask with two bars coming from the ears meeting at the top of the head. Two empty circular eyes stared blankly ahead, at the Doctor and El.</p><p>“Oh.” The Doctor took some steps back, as the Cyber-Slave began to walk. “Who’re you, then?”</p><p>“D… Die…!” The Cyber-Slave cried, reaching its hands out, as it marched limping towards the Doctor.</p><p>“Conversation not your strong-suit, then!” The Doctor took some steps back.</p><p>“You… must… be… deleted!” The Cyber-Slave proclaimed.</p><p>“Ah, well, that’s not ideal.” The Doctor glanced at El. “Perhaps you’d like to help?”</p><p>The girl rolled her eyes, but reached out her hand, clenching her fist.</p><p>The Cyber-Slave suddenly seized up, sparking and spasming, letting out a computerized scream, as it fell to the ground.</p><p>“Thank you.” The Doctor offered, before crouching over the inert Cyber-Slave. “Let’s see if we can learn a bit more about our friend here…” He felt around the jumpsuit’s pockets, before pulling out a keycard with a name on it. “This keycard used to belong to an Alan Watts… This Cyber-Slave probably used to be him.”</p><p>“Used to be?” El asked.</p><p>“The Cyber-Probes have done their work.” The Doctor replied. “Nothing really left of Alan here, I’m afraid…” He glanced at the girl. “Come on, let’s see what we can find inside now that we have this.”</p><p>El nodded, and allowed the Doctor to take the lead again, into the main dome of the artic survey base.</p><p>Passing through the airlock effortlessly, the two came to the main hall, labs, dorms, and storage rooms all off the sides.</p><p>“Careful,” The Doctor said to El, whispering. “There’s a Cyber-Slave right there.”</p><p>The girl looked to the hallway on the right, where there was indeed a Cyber-Slave, standing there, staring away from them. “Why is it just standing there?”</p><p>“The Cyber-Probes are clever enough to make them obedient, but not much else.” The Doctor answered. “Most higher reasoning functions of the brain are shut off to make the slaves totally obedient to the Cybermen.”</p><p>El looked to the Doctor. “Is that going to happen to Chisolm?”</p><p>“If we can’t work out something to stop the Cyber-Probes, probably.” The Doctor answered, leading her into one of the rooms. “Not sure how they would react to the sonic… Not sure if they have the capacity <em>to </em>react.” He looked to the floor, at the tiny silver creature. “But I know something that does react to the sonic!”</p><p>The Doctor pressed down the button, and the Cyber-Mat screeched, retreating into the nearby vents.</p><p>“This whole place is probably infested by now.” The Doctor commented, putting the screwdriver away.</p><p>“Like… spiders.” El shuddered. Animals and insects hadn’t gotten inside the lab often during her stay there, but when they did… Spiders were the things that freaked her out the most.</p><p>“Spiders…” The Doctor shuddered as well, having a flashback to the death of his third body, and the giant insects responsible. “I’d rather we change the subject.” He moved over to a laptop on a nearby desk. “Let’s see what we can pull from this…” The laptop was, thankfully, already running, no password needed.</p><p>Whoever had been using it had been gotten during the middle of work, it seemed.</p><p>“Okay, the woman in charge here is an Elizabeth Meadows.” The Doctor read through the files. “One daughter, Daisy. Hm… It’s her birthday tomorrow, fifth of May.”</p><p>El frowned, furrowing her eyebrows. “Birthday?”</p><p>“Yep, the day you were born.” The Doctor replied, looking back through the files. “Most people throw parties with cake, presents, and friends.”</p><p>“Oh… can I have a birthday?”</p><p>“Sure.” The Doctor answered. “Just have to figure out <em>when </em>you were born… We’ll do it after we finish things up here. Dr. Meadows’s office is just down the way, come on.”</p><p>El nodded, taking the Doctor’s hand, as he guided her out of the room, towards a door with a keypad on the side.</p><p>“Good bet with passwords and PINs, people tend to use them as important dates or people.” The Doctor told El. “I wonder if the good doctor used her daughter’s as the code…”</p><p>The Time Lord punched 0505 into the keypad and waited patiently. It flashed green, before the door slid open. The Doctor smiled, satisfied, as he walked in.</p><p>El gasped, “Dad, look out!” She shouted.</p><p>The Time Lord jumped back, as a pickaxe went flying at his head, being brought down into the table next to him.</p><p>A woman, blonde, with her arm in a sling, had been the one to swing.</p><p>The Doctor blinked, as he led El in. “You don’t get many visitors up here, do you?”</p><p>Meadows whipped around, breathing heavily. “I thought you were a Cyber-Slave!” Her breathing steadied as she looked between the two. “Who are you?”</p><p>“I’m the Doctor, this is El.” He gestured respectively. “We picked up your distress signal.”</p><p>“Thank God!” Meadows let out a sigh of relief. “I’m Doctor Meadows… I’ve been barricaded in here for days.”</p><p>“Don’t worry, we’ll get you out of here.” The Doctor resolved, examining the room.</p><p>El frowned, looking to the sling. “What happened to your arm?”</p><p>“I fell, and broke it trying to escape from those… things.” Meadows replied. “They’re everywhere.”</p><p>“The Cyber-Slaves?”</p><p>“No, the little mouse-like drones.” Meadows elaborated. “They bite, inject nanomachines that begin to convert organic matter into living metal and machinery.”</p><p>“And that’s how you get the Cyber-Slaves.” El nodded. “But… Who’s controlling them?”</p><p>“The Cybermen, of course.” The Doctor came back over, holding a metal arm with a blaster at the end. “Where’d you pick this up?”</p><p>“We were here doing a geological survey when one of our teams unearthed that.” Meadows answered. “It must have been under the ice for… ten-thousand years?”</p><p>“Amazing…” The Doctor looked over the arm. “I haven’t seen Cybertech like this in ages.”</p><p>El raised her eyebrows. “What do you mean?”</p><p>“This is from a Mondasian Cyberman, tactical-grade equipment.” The Doctor answered. “Visually and mechanically similar to the Cybus industries Cybermen that invaded Earth back in… 2006? Or was it 2007?”</p><p>Meadows frowned. “What are you talking about?”</p><p>“There was this breach in Canary Wharf, a hole between worlds.” The Doctor answered. “The people inside were running experiments on it, causing Cybermen to appear all across the world. Cybermen from a parallel Earth, created by Cybus industries. These models are almost identical. Well, save for the chest emblems. And the mechanical capabilities.”</p><p>“Capabilities?” Meadows repeated.</p><p>“See, these Cybermen, the ones from Mondas, the ones from our universe… they were combatants in the Time War.” The Doctor looked at the arm warily. “One of the very few time-active species to fight in the conflict and come out the other side intact.”</p><p>“And… how did they do that?” El questioned.</p><p>“Battlefield upgrading.” The Doctor answered. “A repair suite linked to a vast array of sensors. If one Cyberman goes down in battle, the telemetry gets sent to the rest, and the onboard systems harden them against whatever it was.” The Time Lord looked at the abandoned arm. “Even the Daleks had trouble killing them.”</p><p>“They’ve been trapped her for ten-thousand years.” El paled.</p><p>The Doctor nodded, setting the arm down. “Whatever crashed down there, the ship I’m assuming, did so with enough force that it knocked all the Cybermen on board offline at once, and then the ice froze around them. They would’ve remained inert… But the survey teams here must’ve accidentally woken up the Cyber-Mats… who started converting the personnel of the base into Cyber-Slaves to wake up their masters.” He turned to look at Meadows. “Is that right, doctor?”</p><p>“Yes.” The woman nodded. “I’ve been trying to synthesize an antidote. Something that might reverse the conversion process.”</p><p>“Well, that won’t work.” The Doctor replied, looking into the microscope. “The nanites are smart enough to convert tissue into Cyber-Flesh, but anything else is outside they’re capabilities. Literally, they don’t have the hardware capacity for it, and the human body is fickle enough. Imagine if they put things back ‘round in the wrong order. But,” He snapped his fingers, “We <em>can</em> create an antidote that’ll stop the upgrade in its tracks.”</p><p>“For Chisolm.” El guessed.</p><p>“That’s possible?” Meadows asked.</p><p>“More than possible.” The Doctor answered. “You seem to be a very clever woman, so I’d say likely. The first thing you need is a sample of the nanotechnology on its own, fortunately for you-“ The Doctor reached into his pocket, placing the broken Cyber-Mat from before on the table. “You won’t have to go get bitten to do that, and a lab like this…” The Doctor looked around. “We have all the equipment we need. Shall we?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0047"><h2>47. Blood of the Cybermen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After some minutes of work, El observing the hallway to make sure no Cyber-Slaves snuck up on them, the Doctor and Meadows had finished synthesizing the anti-serum for the Cyber-Probes.</p><p>The Doctor held up the vial of clear liquid, placing it into a syringe. “There. It can’t save the ones who’ve already been converted… But this should help Chisolm, at least.”</p><p>“Glad to hear that.” Meadows nodded. “You go deliver the serum; I’ll be here waiting when you get back.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded and turned to El. “Come on.”</p><p>Taking the lead, grasping El’s hand, the Doctor proceeded out the airlock, across the icy yard to the security tower. Pressing a finger to the button, the Doctor spoke into the intercom.</p><p>“Chisolm, it’s me.” The Doctor said. “I’ve got a cure for the Cyber-Mat bite here. Please, come out so I can give it to you.”</p><p>“…Are you sure it’ll work?” Chisolm responded, the door opening. El yelped, grabbing the Doctor for protection.</p><p>Parts of Chisolm’s body had already been replaced, hand covered in grey rubber, as on his face, skin morphed into metal, slowly.</p><p>“I’ve seen what happened to the others.” Chisolm stated. He still had his mental faculties, at least. Even if his body wouldn’t return to normal because of the serum, it would stop being converted, and then the Doctor could probably get UNIT to pay for the surgeries needed to get Chisolm looking normal again.</p><p>“I don’t know how long it’ll take to work, if it reverses the conversion at all.” The Doctor admitted, injecting the cure into the little patch of skin Chisolm had remaining. “But it’ll stop the conversion, I swear it.”</p><p>Chisolm nodded gratefully, as the Doctor discarded the syringe. “Did you find anybody inside?”</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor nodded. “Doctor Meadows.”</p><p>Chisolm looked relieved to hear that. “They didn’t get her?”</p><p>“Apart from a broken arm, she looked totally fine.” The Doctor answered, “Come on, I’m sure she’d be happy to see you herself.”</p><p>Chisolm nodded, and let the Doctor lead the way.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The three came back to Meadows’s lab, stopping when they crossed the threshold. Meadows was gone.</p><p>“Doctor Meadows?” The Time Lord called. “Are you here?” He let out a sigh. “Don’t wander off. That’s all I ever ask of anybody, is don’t wander off, is that so hard to understand?”</p><p>El frowned, looking around. “Where could she have gone?”</p><p>“…The excavation site.” Chisolm spoke up, looking to the lift at the other side of the room.</p><p>“Um,” El looked wary, “Isn’t that where the slaves are digging?”</p><p>“This whole project is hers. Her team… she’d do anything to save them.” Chisolm said, moving over to the lift’s control panel. “It’s a closed environment, with a retinal scanner to log whoever goes down there.” He explained, placing an unconverted eye up to the scanner.</p><p>The lift doors opened, and Chisolm stood up, ready to move, when he suddenly let out a gasp of pain, and fell to the floor.</p><p>“Oh, oop!” The Doctor caught Chisolm, gently letting the man down. “I don’t think you’re going to be able to go any further. Stay here. Let the serum do its job. El and I are more than capable of handling things from here.”</p><p>Chisolm slowly and reluctantly nodded, as the Doctor and El stepped into the lift.</p><p>The Time Lord hit the button, and the lift shuddered as it began to move down.</p><p>“Bottom floor: Appliances, tunnels, and homicidal Cybermen.” The Doctor remarked, bobbing up and down absently as the lift came to a stop.</p><p>The Doctor peeked his head out first, stepping into the carved tunnel, before motioning El to follow.</p><p>“Careful…” The Doctor warned her. “This place is absolutely crawling with Cyber-Slaves.”</p><p>El furrowed her brow, looking around. “What’s with the tunnels?”</p><p>“Standard digging practice.” The Doctor answered. “You do a cross-pattern of trenches -or in this case, tunnels- until you find what you’re looking for.”</p><p>“And they found it.” El recognized with a sigh.</p><p>“They weren’t looking for what they <em>found.</em>” The Doctor replied. “…If only they stopped while they were ahead.” He turned to El and motioned for her to follow.</p><p>The two rounding a corner, they spotted a Cyber-Slave marching up and down the tunnel. Before it could call the two out to its brethren, or otherwise react, El’s hand shot out, and she slammed it into the wall, the metal cranium popping off, before the body fell down, bloodless.</p><p>Quietly wandering through the maze-like tunnels, the two eventually came to a ladder in one corner. The Doctor ushered El down first, and climbed down after her, emerging on another level of the tunnel network.</p><p>Two Cyber-Slaves were marching down this tunnel, before being quickly dispatched by El once again. Heading to another corner, they climbed down another ladder, and proceeded through the final level of tunnels, taking out more Cyber-Slaves along the way.</p><p>Eventually, the two emerged in a large cavern, a geometric structure poking partway out of the ice. There were two massive octagonal holes in the structure, with several smaller blocks of hexagonal vents surrounding them.</p><p>“What is that?” El whispered to the Doctor.</p><p>“The stern of the Cyber-Ship.” The Doctor answered, looking at the metallic framework the humans had installed around it. “Fleeing from the Time War, I’d say, before it crashed down here, and the ice froze back over it.”</p><p>“It’s been waiting down here.” El said, looking at the vessel.</p><p>“Waiting for some humans who had no idea what they were messing with to come and unearth it.” The Time Lord replied. “The automated systems must have detected the expedition and sent out the Cyber-Mats to start the excavation. Clever stuff… deadly. Once the Cybermen are awake, they’re going to go for the nearest human settlements, and continue their mission… the conversion of humanity into Cybermen. We have to stop them.” The Doctor resolved, leading the way across the icy cavern.</p><p>They came to a cargo lift and stood on it. Sonicing the control panel, the Doctor sent the lift up.</p><p>“One Cyberman.” The Doctor anxiously spoke aloud, as they walked across the scaffold to the next lift. “That’s all it would take.”</p><p>“Is that why we’re going up there?” El asked, pointed to the control room as they took the next lift, and proceeded.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor answered, taking the lead through a small access port in the side. “Here it is… the heart of the Cyber-ship.”</p><p>The Time Lord looked around, before spotting the figure hunched over a control terminal. A Cyber-Leader, similar in appearance to the standard Cyberman, just with a black faceplate and transparent cranium allowing the brain to be seen, sat in the chair, two standard Cyber-Units on the floor next to it.</p><p>They all looked like they were wearing futuristic suits of armor, big and bulky metal segments all interlocked with black cabling and artificial muscles underneath, as opposed to the rather slim build of the Cyber-Slaves. A little logo, reminiscent of the Cybermen’s own faces, were stamped on the breastplates of each Cyberman, where the sternum would be if they were human.</p><p>“Doctor Meadows!” The Doctor pleasantly recognized. “I was afraid the Cyber-Mats had gotten to you.”</p><p>The woman straightened herself upright, the back of her head silver, as she turned around. Her skin was a pale grey, blue veins popping out from the areas surrounding her eyes, as a headpiece similar to the cranium units of the Cybermen just without the faceplate was jutting out of her skull.</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor blinked, as mechanical stomping suddenly approached.</p><p>Six Cyber-Slaves had surrounded them.</p><p>El’s hand shot out, but the Doctor grabbed it. “Don’t. There’s no way you could take out all six at once.” He looked to Meadows. “You’re not looking too good there. Perhaps a lie down?”</p><p>Meadows scowled. “Humor is a redundant application of intellect.”</p><p>“I dunno, I find it comes in handy when in a tense spot.” The Doctor tugged his jacket. “So… The conversion already looks like it’s progressed quite a bit, certainly farther than Chisolm’s since it appears to have gotten your brain, but since you’re not blankly moaning ‘delete’ like a zombie, I’d hazard the guess that you’re not a standard Cyber-Slave, are you? The Cyber-Mat that got you must’ve had command routines plugged in, seeking out the smartest person on-site to bite.” The Doctor clasped his hands. “So, the Cyber-Probes that started converting you must’ve been more advanced units, designed to keep as much of the brain’s higher functions intact as possible.”</p><p>“What for?” El asked, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>“To create a Cyber-Planner.” The Doctor answered, looking seriously at Meadows. “The actual commanding force behind all these slaves, directing them to free the Cybermen from their icy prison.”</p><p>“Correct, Doctor.” The Cyber-Planner confirmed. “And to facilitate this… you will assist us.”</p><p>“Assist you!?” The Doctor incredulously repeated, huffing. “Like hell I will!”</p><p>“If you do not,” Three of the Cyber-Slaves, grabbed onto El, “Your child will be upgraded.”</p><p>“Don’t lay a finger on her, don’t you dare touch her!” The Doctor struggled, as the other three restrained him as well. “You’ve already got the excavation running, why do you need me!?”</p><p>“This ship was caught in the Battle of Skull Moon.” The Cyber-Planner stated, the Doctor’s blood going cold as he froze. “A computer virus of Time Lord origin has infected the ship’s databanks, locking it in the state you see now. A state that we cannot reverse, but a Time Lord can. And what better Time Lord… than the Butcher of Skull Moon himself?”</p><p>“That’s irony.” The Doctor recognized. “Cybermen don’t have a sense of irony… You still have your emotions, Elizabeth, you can fight it!”</p><p>“Do not attempt to appeal to me, Doctor.” The Cyber-Planner ordered. “Or I will simply give the order for your child to become the first in a new line of Cybermen.”</p><p>The Doctor looked to El, the girl returning his gaze, terrified, before the Doctor turned back to the Cyber-Planner.</p><p>“Okay…” The Doctor sighed, “Okay, I’ll help you.”</p><p>“Excellent.” The Cyber-Planner sent the command for the Doctor to be released, but the slaves still kept hold of El.</p><p>Stepping aside from the console, the Cyber-Planner observed as the Doctor worked to fix the system. A computer virus was tame, especially by the standards of the Time War, but what worked worked, and the Time Lords took every advantage they could. That was why the Battle of Skull Moon had happened in the first place. The Cyber-Controller, an AI connected to every Cyberman in existence at the time, had established its base on Skull Moon, a key strategic point which could allow the Cybermen access to more than three-dozen humanoid species, all compatible for the Cyber-conversion process.</p><p>The Time Lords had sent the Doctor in, back when he was actually taking orders from them, with more than five-thousand Time Lords by his side, gave him the virus, and ordered him to upload it into the Cyber-Controller directly to cause the most damage.</p><p>The Time Lords had succeeded, and the Cyber-Controller had shut down, along with every Cyberman connected to it, but out of the five thousand… only a dozen or so survived. The Doctor had all ordered them to their deaths, either knowingly or unknowingly, which was what earned him that title.</p><p>Just one of the many, many tales from the Time War that haunted the Doctor, even now.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, looking up from the terminal as the last bit of the virus was purged from the Cybermen’s systems.</p><p>The Cyber-Leader’s head slowly looked up, whirring. The Cyber-Slaves, suddenly having control wrenched from them by the Cyber-Leader, released El, the girl running over to the Doctor, the two warily watching as the activity in the room began to skyrocket.</p><p>“Cyber-Leader,” The Cyber-Planner bowed, “I’ve awakened you.”</p><p>“Your protocol has been successful.” The Cyber-Leader spoke in a deep, synthesized voice. “You are no longer required. You will be deleted.”</p><p>“B-But I restored you!” The Cyber-Planner spluttered.</p><p>“Indignance is an emotional response.” The Cyber-Leader stood up, the regular Cybermen getting to their feet as well. “Emotional responses are a malfunction. Malfunctions will be rectified. Delete!” It ordered, taking aim with its arm. A red laser shot out from the blaster on its arm, and Meadows screamed in agony, before she fell to the ground, dead.</p><p>The Cyber-Leader then turned to the jumpsuit wearing slaves. “Cyber-Slaves are now redundant units. Redundant units will be deleted.”</p><p>The Cybermen by its side took aim, and fired off shots at the Cyber-Slaves, the robotic creatures screaming as they died as well.</p><p>The Cyber-Leader turned to the Doctor and El. “You are no longer required. You will be deleted.”</p><p>Before it could say anything, else, it suddenly sparked, crackling with red electricity, before it slammed into the ground. More shots quickly fired in the direction of the other two Cybermen, taking them down as well.</p><p>The Doctor and El, whipped around to face the source.</p><p>“Delete this.” Chisolm held the smoking blaster arm from Meadows’s office, looking perfectly human once again.</p><p>“Mister Chisolm!” The Doctor beamed. “Feeling better, are we?”</p><p>“Indeed I am.” Chisolm looked down at the dead Cyber-Leader, scowled, and kicked its leg.</p><p>“Cool.” El laughed, turning to the Doctor. “What about the Cybermen? They’ve already woken up.”</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers anxiously, pointing at the girl, as he turned back to the computer terminal. “That they have. And since those ones have been killed,” He glanced to the dead ones on the floor, “The rest of them down here are going to be hardened against it.”</p><p>“Well, how do we stop them!?” Chisolm asked with worry. “The nearest base is Fort Cecil, they’ll be slaughtered!”</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to a screen on the map, showing an arrangement of blips moving across a topographic map, “They’re moving. Fast.”</p><p>“Blimey, already?” The Doctor asked. “Think, Doctor, think…” The Time Lord snapped his fingers repeatedly. “Can’t write a new virus in time, can’t just blow the ship up and go cause that’ll leave the ones on the surface, can’t fight with weapons because they’ll just adapt to it!” The Doctor suddenly gasped. “Adapt… I’ve got it!” The Doctor typed something into the terminal, before running over to a Cyberman.</p><p>“What are you doing?” El asked.</p><p>“Turning their own power against them. Literally!” The Doctor pressed the sonic screwdriver to the Cyberman’s breastplate. “I’m going to blow up its power cell, and to the automated upgrade systems, it’ll look like the power core just blew up by itself!”</p><p>Chisolm gasped, understanding what the Doctor was getting at. “They’ll adapt against their own power sources! They’ll be without power in the middle of the ice, they’ll die!”</p><p>“Yep!” The Doctor confirmed, pulling El and Chisolm back as the Cyberman’s body suddenly exploded.</p><p><em>“Upgrade in progress.” </em>The automated voice of the ship suddenly announced.</p><p>“There’s all the Cybermen, receiving the software patch!” The Doctor stated in satisfaction.</p><p>
  <em>“Warning. Self-destruct in two minutes. All Cyber-Units, evacuate immediately.”</em>
</p><p>“Oh, did I neglect to mention, I activated the self-destruct countdown?” The Doctor asked, grabbing the two by their hands, running out through the way they’d came in.</p><p>Sprinting down the stairs of the scaffolding, the Doctor hit the cargo lift and waited as it took them down to the middle level of the scaffold, connected to the top level of the tunnels.</p><p>As the alarm from the Cyber-ship sounded, the Doctor, El, and Chisolm sprinted into the tunnels, jumping over dead Cyber-Slaves, and dodging inert Cybermen.</p><p>Finally making it to the lift, the Doctor ushered the other two in first, before ducking inside, hitting the button to go up. Anxiously bobbing, the lift stopped on the main floor, and the three sprinted out, trying to put as much distance between themselves and the dome as possible.</p><p>Just seconds later, the Cyber-ship’s engines exploded, sending up great chunks of ice, bits twisted metal, and smoke into the air, raining down on the entire area.</p><p>Luckily for the three, they had just made it to the outside of the TARDIS when the explosion occurred, the sapient ship protecting them from the explosion.</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor blinked, getting up from the ground. “That was certainly a show. Have to say, I love it when things go to plan.” He commented, helping El up.</p><p>The girl frowned. “Aunt Sarah said you don’t make plans. You just bumble around and hope you don’t mess up.”</p><p>“Silly girl, that <em>is </em>the plan.” The Doctor replied, as the sounds of rotors echoed overhead.</p><p>Chisolm looked up. “That’ll be the Fort Cecil plane. They run supply drops to the base. Or…” Chisolm looked around. “What’s left of it now.”</p><p>The Doctor drew his lips into a solemn line. “I’m sorry about your colleagues. They were too far gone… I couldn’t reverse the process like I did with you.”</p><p>Chisolm looked to the damaged dome. “There were risks… but most of them expected it to be frostbite and exposure.” He turned back to the Doctor. “There’s going to be questions.”</p><p>“And most of them asked by someone from UNIT, I expect.” The Doctor replied. “Just mention my name, it’ll be fine.”</p><p>Chisolm frowned. “You never mentioned it…”</p><p>“The Doctor.”</p><p>Chisolm raised an eyebrow. ”Doctor Who?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, pushing the TARDIS door open to allow El in first. “Just the Doctor.” The Time Lord stepped in behind her and shut the door.</p><p>A moment later, the engines engaged, and Chisolm watched, stunned, as the TARDIS vanished in slowly pulsating light, leaving no indication it was ever there other than an indent in the ice.</p><p>------------</p><p>Out in the icy fields of the arctic circle, a legion of Cybermen stood, completely still, their bodies freezing over. A silent monument to just how close the world had nearly come to ending.</p><p>The Doctor flicked the switch on the monitor, the view going dead as the Time Rotor moved up and down. “Now… with that done, what do you say to a vacation?”</p><p>“A vacation?” El tilted her head.</p><p>“Well, duh!” The Doctor replied. “While Sarah Jane’s decompressing from us, we can relax as well! Or did you think I was just piloting the TARDIS around wildly?”</p><p>“Yes.” El honestly answered.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her, spluttering. “Okay, well, maybe a little bit, but come on, it’ll be lovely!”</p><p>El crossed her arms. “It won’t end badly this time, will it?”</p><p>“Of course not,” The Doctor turned to her, “What gave you that idea?”</p><p>“Every time we’ve tried to go somewhere nice, it didn’t go well.”</p><p>“Now, that’s not true!” The Doctor vehemently denied, pointing.</p><p>“Delirium Archive, Venice, Rio.” El listed off. “Actually… name <em>one </em>place you went to where things didn’t go bad.”</p><p>“Well, there was Brighton Beach-“ The Doctor cut himself off. “Actually, no, that didn’t end well. There was a lovely time in Paris-“ The Time Lord stopped again. “Wait, Romana and I got caught up dealing with something that time too…”</p><p>El leaned on the console. “Still thinking?”</p><p>“Trouble seems to follow me around…” The Doctor muttered.</p><p>“Yeah,” El nodded. “That’s true.”</p><p>“And it’s almost never my fault, of course.” The Doctor continued. “Sometimes, things just happen by themselves.”</p><p>The engines suddenly began to warble in an unstable manner, as the console room shook like the TARDIS was caught in an earthquake.</p><p>“What’s happening!?” El shouted, holding onto the console for dear life.</p><p>“We’re still in the wrong section of the time vortex!” The Doctor answered, checking the readouts on the panel closest to the door. “Something’s wrong!”</p><p>“Can you fix it!?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor opened his mouth to speak, when the doors suddenly sprung open, air blowing out.</p><p>The Doctor was pulled from the console, grabbing onto the railing on the platform. The Time Lord tried to keep his grip, when it slipped, and he went flying.</p><p>“Dad!” El screamed, as the Doctor was blown out into space.</p><p>------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>
  <strong> <em> <span class="u">I’m a bit excited about this one, so, for your perusal, a little preview of an early Christmas special. No, it won’t be replacing A Christmas Carol, but I will start uploading it after I finish with that.</span> </em> </strong>
</p><p>“You two!” The Doctor pulled open the hatch above the cabin. <em>“</em>What’s going on!? Are you two okay!?”</p><p>“Fine, dad…” El rubbed her head.</p><p>Something in the distance cracked, grabbing Mike’s attention. “Look!” He pointed.</p><p>The Doctor looked up, seeing the ice split. “Worry later!” He resolved, looking back down. “Just get us the hell outta dodge!”</p><p>El pulled back a lever, and the train began to move, away from the widening fissure at the highest reverse gear it had.</p><p>“Now!” The Doctor looked back in. “Turn this baby around!”</p><p>The wheels locked, and the train accordioned, the people on top staggering. Then, in what Mike thought had to be the biggest violation of the laws of physics he had ever seen, the locomotive swung around, before El pushed the throttle forward, the train proceeding away from the cracking ice as fast as it could, straightening out.</p><p>“ARE WE DRIFTING A GODDAMN TRAIN ACROSS A FROZEN LAKE!?” Mike bellowed, looking around.</p><p>“We’re not doing anything!” The Doctor replied. “She is!” He pointed down to El.</p><p>“What’s that!?” Holly pointed at the small divide in a cliff wall in the distance.</p><p>The Doctor narrowed his eyes, trying to look. “Tracks! Nicely spotted, kid!” He beamed. “Dead ahead!” He directed into the cabin below. “Right!” He guided, the train shaking as the wheels switched up. “Left!” He called back down, the train shuddering as El did as instructed. “Right!” The Doctor instructed as the train began to drift too far to the other side again. “Hang a Louie! Toss a Ritchie! Port astern! Hard starboard!”</p><p>“Whoa, my slipper!” Mike said, as the wind began to pull off his slipper.</p><p>“You’re going to lose your ticket!” Holly shouted over the noise of everything else.</p><p>“It’s not my ticket, it’s yours!” Mike responded, narrowly catching the slipper as it came flying off, and the ticket began flapping around in the air in front of them.</p><p>“It’s mine!?” Holly repeated.</p><p>“Yes!” Mike answered, the two of them trying to grab it out of the air.</p><p>“Alright, keep up with me!” The Doctor shouted down, El below pulling levers even faster now. “Left! Right! Left!”</p><p>Mike and Holly desperately tried to grab the ticket, as the train kept switching directions every few seconds, the cracking ice getting ever closer to the train.</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor ordered. “Left!”</p><p>Mike and Holly grabbed the ticket at once, the ice finally cracking, the cars in the back sinking into the water.</p><p>“Look out!” The two screamed.</p><p>The Doctor turned around, a concerned look on his face. “BRACE YOURSELVES!” He screamed, hitting the deck as the ice underneath the locomotive finally cracked.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0048"><h2>48. TARDIS</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Nngh…” El groaned, shaking her head as she got up from the floor. The TARDIS had finally settled, becoming stable.</p><p>Looking over to the door, the girl gasped, and ran over.</p><p>The Doctor was out there, floating, waving his arms to catch her attention, as little blue mites ran up and down his body.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted, reaching out. He was too far away to grab with her arm, and though she tried, she couldn’t move him with her powers.</p><p>The Doctor began moving his mouth.</p><p>“I can’t hear you!” El gestured. “Can you talk louder?”</p><p>The Doctor pointed to his throat.</p><p>“Right, no air, no talking…” El inhaled. Tapping her head to try to get the Doctor to communicate telepathically, the Time Lord shook his head.</p><p>All of his mental faculties were obviously being devoted to making sure he didn’t suffocate.</p><p>“Umm…” El tapped her hands together, looking between the console and the Doctor. “What do I do? How do I fix this!?”</p><p>The Doctor looked lost in thought, before he held up two fingers.</p><p>“Oh, great, we’re both terrible at charades!” El frustratedly shook her head. “Okay, two words. First word… hurry up!”</p><p>The Doctor held up a hand to his ear and began pounding his chest.</p><p>“Sounds like…. you, the Doctor…” El’s eyebrows knit together. “Hearts, two hearts, monkey, gorilla, King Kong? Tarzan? Ribs? Chest?”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly nodded, pointing insistently.</p><p>“Chest? Chest!” El nodded. “Sounds like chest… best? Guest? …Press?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded again.</p><p>“Chest doesn’t rhyme with press!” El scowled.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head and held up his hand again.</p><p>“Okay, second word…” El looked closely. “Sounds like face? Hair? Head?” The Doctor nodded. “Head! Sounds like head… Dead… bed… red?”</p><p>The Doctor gave a thumbs up.</p><p>“’Press red.’” El nodded, turning to look at the console. “…Which red!? There’s lots of red!”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged, throwing his arms out.</p><p><em>‘I believe that means ‘all of the red things.’’</em> The TARDIS whispered to El.</p><p>“Right, okay!” El ran up to the console, pushing the red lever up.</p><p>Moving around the console, El pressed the red buttons, twisted the red knobs, flicked the red switched, and pushed up the other red lever.</p><p>Triggered by her inputs, the console began flickered and began to glow, mechanisms moving within it once more.</p><p>“Um… It’s doing something!” El called to the Doctor. “It looks like it’s coming back on!”</p><p><em>‘Here, little one.’ </em>The monitor on the console spun around to face her, switching on, showing the Doctor as he put something in his ear.</p><p><em>“King Kong!?” </em>The Doctor incredulously demanded. <em>“Why would I tell you to press King Kong!? Oh, never mind, I’m just glad I can breathe again… The reset of the TARDIS has automatically extended the air shell. So, here’s the thing, we’ve fallen into a riptide of the time vortex. We’re stuck in one of the pockets and we don’t have long until the TARDIS gets dragged to the next one.”</em></p><p>“Okay, well, let me pull you in.” El replied.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head. <em>“Either your powers have gone dead like an empty battery from using them so much in the GSO station, or something about the riptide’s causing them to fail. You’re going to have to solve this mechanically. You’ll have to find something you can use to power the tractor beam and attach it to the console...”</em></p><p>“Okay,” El looked to the screen expectantly. “What do I use?”</p><p><em>“You should be able to find something suitable in the drawing room…” </em>The Doctor answered. <em>“Hurry! If the TARDIS gets dragged away, I’ll be stuck here forever!”</em></p><p>“But how do I find the drawing room?” El inquired. “I haven’t been there before!”</p><p><em>“Don’t worry, it’s very simple.” </em>The Doctor replied. <em>"Take the corridor for about half a mile, turn left, then right, then right again, and then it's your third next right. Go past the weird swirly thing, left then another left. through the sunroom --careful not to trip over the sun lounger-- then you'll see a green door --don't go in there-- go right, follow the wall until it gets a bit slimy, then take the lift to the third floor. Drawing room’s straight ahead, you can't miss it. Easy peasy."</em></p><p>El shook her head. Some days, the TARDIS really was too big to navigate.</p><p><em>“Now, that is my private study!” </em>The Doctor told her. <em>“Go poking around for what you need but come straight back! And don’t sit in my chair! I’ve been working on the groove in that for the past half-millennium. Good luck.”</em> He wished.</p><p>El sighed, and stepped back from the monitor, turning around. Walking up the steps, she proceeded into the hexagonal corridor, following the singular pathway around the bend, before frowning. The Doctor didn’t mention stairs.</p><p>Walking down the steps, El recoiled slightly, as she emerged back in the console room.</p><p>“Weird…” El frowned, turning to walk back up the steps. This time, it didn’t even offer the premise of a corridor as she walked up the stairs on the other side of the console room onto the platform. “What-?”</p><p><em>‘The riptide is interfering with my internal dimensions as well.’ </em>The TARDIS informed the girl. <em>‘Move to the panel to the right of the one by the steps leading to the door.’</em></p><p>The girl nodded, trusting the living ship, as she moved to that position.</p><p><em>‘Ensure that every lever on this panel is pointing directly up.’ </em>The TARDIS instructed. <em>‘I would simply do it myself, but it takes a great deal of effort to manipulate the controls on my own.’</em></p><p>El nodded, and did as the TARDIS instructed, pointing the wibbly lever straight up first, then the two on the front of the panel, before lifting the one at the very back.</p><p><em>‘Very good.’ </em>The TARDIS complimented, as air began to flow through the console room better. <em>‘Perhaps when this is done, I shall give you proper piloting instruction.’</em></p><p>El smiled, and walked back up the steps, following the Doctor’s directions.</p><p>-----------</p><p>After following the Doctor’s guidance, El came to a set of two heavy mahogany doors. Pushing them open, El came into a room filled with ticking clocks, various bits of junk, and a lot of books. On the wall across the way, above a perpetually burning fire, hung a painting of a man El had never seen. An Edwardian gentleman with curly hair wearing a green velvet long coat, a double-breasted silver waistcoat, a grey cravat around his neck, with a copper sonic screwdriver with a blue crystal emitter in his hand looked out at her from the painting.</p><p>Despite the fact she’d never seen the man, something told her it was the Doctor… Hmm, he had her hair. And eyes… Even though the Eleventh Doctor looked nothing like her except for having similar-colored hair, this Doctor looked like he could actually be El’s biological father.</p><p><em>‘Eighth.’ </em>The TARDIS told El. <em>‘The romantic. Such a love for living… undeserving of the fate that befell him.’</em></p><p>El frowned, looking around. Even though there was a whole bunch of old clutter, there seemed to be --dare she say it-- a system to it all.</p><p>Still, there had to be something she could use as a tractor beam around here somewhere.</p><p>El began walking around, examining anything and everything she could.</p><p>The first object that caught her attention was a really, very long scarf hanging from a coat rack.</p><p><em>‘That scarf belonged to the Fourth Doctor.’ </em>The TARDIS explained. <em>‘Madame Nostradamus knit it for him back when he was in his second face.’</em></p><p>El blinked at it. It looked like whoever wore it would be swallowed by it. Moving down the shelves, El spotted another object that caught her eye, shaped kind of like a gun.</p><p>Odd. The Doctor didn’t use guns, did he?</p><p><em>‘Sonic blaster.’ </em>The TARDIS exposited. <em>‘The Doctor keeps it around for River in the future, but it originally belonged to Captain Jack Harkness.’</em></p><p>“Ah.” El nodded, “What’s that?” She pointed to the red ball.</p><p>
  <em>‘A cricket ball. The Fifth Doctor used it to save his own life once.’</em>
</p><p>El tilted her head. “How did he save his life with a ball?”</p><p>
  <em>‘Very, very carefully.’</em>
</p><p>El huffed, still looking around, poking a semi-transparent glass ball. ‘What about this?”</p><p>
  <em>‘An Ood translator sphere. The species was enslaved by humankind in the far future. Not tractor beam material, I’m afraid.’</em>
</p><p>El frowned. “Then what? All of this stuff is just old bits of junk.”</p><p>The TARDIS suddenly shook, and El staggered, trying to keep her balance, as one of the clocks on the wall suddenly swung out, revealing a hidden compartment.</p><p><em>‘Sorry about that.’ </em>The TARDIS apologized. <em>‘But there is your answer.’</em></p><p>El narrowed her eyes, reaching into the compartment, pulling out a device not unlike the sonic screwdriver, with three barrels on the end. “A sonic screwdriver?”</p><p><em>‘Laser screwdriver.’ </em>The TARDIS corrected. <em>‘Be very careful with it.’</em></p><p>El nodded, and prepared to go back to the console room, when the TARDIS shook again. As the shaking continued, a vase on the inside of the same compartment as the laser screwdriver fell out, and smashed against the floor, shattering into a thousand pieces.</p><p><em>‘That wasn’t my doing this time.’ </em>The TARDIS said, once the shaking had ceased. <em>‘You must hurry back to the control room.’</em></p><p>“Right.” El nodded, moving back to the control room.</p><p>Unbeknownst to El, and not pointed out by the TARDIS, a glowing orange spherical entity materialized over the broken vase, before vanishing into the fireplace, into the energy conduits of the TARDIS.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dad,” El spoke, walking down the steps to the console. “I found this… laser screwdriver thingy, will that work?”</p><p><em>“Ah, brilliant, yes!” </em>The Doctor responded, looking a bit rough on the monitor. <em>“Just plug it into the slot on the fabrication panel, that’s the little circular hole on the panel closest to the door.”</em></p><p>“Okay.” El nodded, moving around to the panel. Reaching up, El plugged it into the slot on the console, the device lighting up a moment later. “Now what?”</p><p>
  <em>“Now, the little telescope emitter on the console, do you see it?”</em>
</p><p>The girl looked to the bit of technology just above the slot. “Yes.”</p><p><em>“Fiddle around with the controls on that panel until it’s pointed towards me.” </em>The Doctor explained. <em>“The panel should’ve automatically changed modes when you plugged the screwdriver in.”</em></p><p>“Okay.” El grabbed onto the little gear shift, the zig-zag-plotter the Doctor had called it once, moving the emitter clockwise to face the door. Spinning the little winder on the front of the panel, the emitter pivoted down.</p><p>Checking to make sure it was aimed, El pressed the button, and watched as a blue funnel of energy was projected out, striking the Doctor in the chest, pulling him in.</p><p>“Ah, that’s a relief!” The Doctor breathed the moment his boots hit the floor. “Those little blue bugs crawling on me out there? Chronomites. Four-dimensional creatures that live in the void. Harmless, but blimey o’reily they’re itchy.” The Time Lord smiled approvingly. “You did good, El.”</p><p>“Thanks.” The girl smiled.</p><p>“Seriously!” The Doctor insisted. “You maintained a level-head under pressure and presumably worked out what to use as a power source for the tractor beam as well!”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Why did we need the laser screwdriver?”</p><p>“The tractor beam’s disconnected from the console power so it doesn’t accidentally activate mid-flight.” The Doctor answered. “All it needs is a secondary power source to plug in, which isn’t hard to come by, but inconvenient if you happen to be free-floating out in the void.”</p><p>“Yeah… It was a bit hard to find.” El admitted. “Your drawing room is messy… Oh, and I think I broke your thingy of aftershave.”</p><p>“Aftershave?” The Doctor repeated, shaking his head. “I don’t keep aftershave in the-“</p><p>The TARDIS suddenly rocked as if it had been hit, as a deep ringing, like that of a church bell, echoed throughout the ship.</p><p>“We’re being dragged into the next pocket!” The Doctor hollered, trying to maintain his balance.</p><p>“What’s that!?” El asked, grabbing the console.</p><p>“That’s the Cloister Bell!” The Doctor replied, fearfully looking around. “It means that something is very seriously wrong, we could all die because of it, and I don’t know how to fix-“ The console room suddenly settled, and the Doctor turned to the console.</p><p>El was gone, nowhere to be seen.</p><p>“…it.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El shook her head, and looked up, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. The TARDIS looked… different. The structure of the console room was the same, sure, but everything was dark… cold, dim blue lighting replacing the warm orange ambience.</p><p>“Oh…” El looked around. “Dad!” She called. “Dad, are you there?”</p><p>No response came.</p><p>“Okay, it’s okay…” El said to herself. “I’m in the TARDIS, I’m safe.”</p><p>El felt something zap the air behind her, and whipped around, just barely catching a glimpse of an orange, floating sphere.</p><p>She didn’t know it… but she was in <em>colossal </em>trouble.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor walked up the steps to the console, rubbing his chin in thought. “The internal timekeeping systems must have fallen out of sync. El’s lost somewhere in the TARDIS’s past or future… Or maybe I’m the one who’s lost.” He snorted. “That’d be rubbish.” He absently bobbed on his feet. Since he wasn’t bouncing around all over the console room’s timeline, that meant the internal systems had already fixed themselves, but El still wasn’t there.</p><p>Like if you took a sheet of paper, with two dots on one end, brought both ends together, and pulled the ends apart, but one dot had been stuck on the other side.</p><p>“I need to figure out whenabouts in time I am and see how much power is left.” The Doctor muttered to himself.</p><p>The first thing he did was walk around to the flip clock between two of the panels, looking at it. The clock was wildly flipping back and forth between two times every second.</p><p>“Make your mind up.” The Doctor frustratedly spoke. “Am I here or a thousand years in my future? Here? Future? Here? Future?” He shook his head, and stood up, moving around to the other side.</p><p>The needles of all four ammeters were stuck bouncing back and forth, humming.</p><p>“It’s caught between two possibilities… That’s not good.” The Doctor frowned. “Okay, so, internal time has desynchronized, El’s stuck in the TARDIS a thousand years in the future relative to now, I’m stuck here… I can fix it by setting off a reverse tachyon feedback loop from both directions at once!” He snapped his fingers, coming to an idea. “That should desynchronize the time systems in both time periods, and when the TARDIS stabilizes again, she’ll be back here again! Hm…” The Time Lord rubbed the back of his head. “Tricky. But not impossible for a clever old chap like me. The parts I need should be in the drawing room.” He recalled, beginning the trek there. “I’ll need something to keep track of time, and something to focus the time energies into place.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed, shaking his head.</p><p>“Talking to myself already. That’s a new record.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Entering the drawing room, the Doctor’s eyes were drawn to the broken vase on the floor, and he immediately sprinted over.</p><p>“No, no, no…” The Doctor crouched in front of the shards, and the small puddle on the floor. “That’s impossible! It had a triple-deadlocked forcefield!”</p><p>The Doctor gulped, looking up.</p><p>“That means the Entity has escaped…” Quickly dashing into action, figuring that since the ancient Time Lord criminal <em>wasn’t </em>there with the Doctor, they had been sent into the future with El.</p><p>And unless he did something, fast, he’d never get to see El again.</p><p>“Okay, fob watch.” He grabbed the golden watch with Gallifreyan etchings off the fireplace mantle. “It’s a watch, so, that’s timekeeping naturally sorted. Now, something to focus the time energies…”</p><p>The Doctor frantically looked around, spotting the chronon blocker he’d built for El in Kalaann.</p><p>Taking the Kontron crystal out, the Doctor began making his way back to the console room.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“This should do the trick just nicely…” The Doctor muttered to himself, as he put all the components into place.</p><p>It wasn’t as simple as ‘wrap wire around crystal and attach to coil’ but the Doctor had got it done just as quickly, turning the fob watch into a jury-rigged space-time focusing device.</p><p>“Now, El needs to use this as well, but there’s a thousand years between us…” The Doctor frowned. “If I just left it lying around any potential future passengers could get their hands on it and wind up here.” He looked around the console, snapping his fingers. “This should do the trick.”</p><p>The Doctor bent down, placing the focusing device into the dispenser under the console.</p><p>“Now, to add a little bit of security…” The Doctor moved the scanner around, and hit a button on the front, his own face appearing on the screen, with a blinking red dot in the corner.</p><p>“El, it’s me!” The Doctor began. “Well, a recording of me…”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0049"><h2>49. First Flight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hello?” El looked around the console room anxiously. Her powers <em>still </em>weren’t back, and there was something in there with her. “Dad, please tell me that’s you.”</p><p>El whipped around and yelped, as the orange sphere reached out glowing tendrils towards her. Her body was covered in an orange glow, as it started to feel like she was being ripped apart.</p><p>“Get away!” El ordered, swiping at it. “Get away!”</p><p>During her motions, El hit something on the console, and the scanner activated.</p><p><em>“El, it’s me!” </em>The Doctor, in the correct console room, appeared. <em>“Well, a recording of me, but that’s neither here nor there, unlike you, who is both here and there… in a sense.”</em></p><p>“Talk faster!” El shouted at the recording.</p><p><em>“Anyway, I’m rambling.” </em>The Doctor waved himself off. <em>“The time riptide has caused a hiccup in the internal timekeeping systems of the TARDIS. See, the inside exists outside of time in a sort of pocket dimension, which means the only flow of time is the flow regulated by the TARDIS herself.”</em></p><p>“I know, Jane told me, hurry up!” El ordered.</p><p><em>“And to make matters worse, it destabilized the forcefield holding a sort of blobby orangey thing calling itself the Entity.” </em>The Doctor exposited. <em>“They were a criminal of the Time Lords, long ago, who started consuming others’ timelines in order to keep themselves alive. Anyway, when their crimes caught up with them, they were executed. But they were clever, they used a thing called a Deathworm Morphant, keeping their consciousness going in the aforementioned orange blobby thing.”</em></p><p>“Come on, dad, it’s here now!”</p><p><em>“Anyway, to make a long story short, I was the poor shmuck who got saddled with taking them back to Gallifrey, but then things happened, and I just sort of… forgot about them?” </em>The Doctor shook his head and frustratedly rubbed the bridge of his nose. <em>“Anyway, I can fix this, but first I need to get you back here. A series of questions will appear on the screen. No, I can’t tell you the answers, cause that just means somebody other than you can mess this whole thing up.”</em></p><p>“Okay, questions…” El nodded to herself, as the scanner extended down to her level, loading the Doctor’s program.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question one: Which one of my faces is known for wearing a scarf?’</em>
</p><p>“Oh, that’s easy.” El hit the button for number Four.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question two: What did the Vampires we faced in Venice look like?’</em>
</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “Like I could forget.” She pressed the button for fish people. Yeah, that wasn’t something you forgot every day.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question three: Who knitted the scarf my fourth face wore?’</em>
</p><p>El furrowed her eyebrows. “Dad loves his questions.” She remarked, hitting the button.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question four: What version of Cybermen were the ones we encountered at the GSO base?’</em>
</p><p>“That was… Time War.” She selected. “…I don’t actually know that much about it. Hm. Maybe I should ask.”</p><p>
  <em>‘Question five (you’re halfway there, sweetheart, you’re doing great!): Who was your husband in the Hawkins dream world?’</em>
</p><p>El smiled fondly, making the choice. “Will…” Ten years of memories didn’t fade easily, and absence certainly made the heart grow fonder.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question six: What was the monster in Hawkins?’</em>
</p><p>“Called it… a Neverwere.” El recalled.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question seven: My fifth face saved his life with one of these.’</em>
</p><p>“What is a cricket ball?”</p><p>
  <em>‘Question eight: Where do you get sent if the weeping angels touch you?’</em>
</p><p>“The past.”</p><p>
  <em>‘Question nine: What is my favorite food? (come on, I’m practically giving this one to you!)’</em>
</p><p>“Fish fingers and custard.” Trying it herself, the food actually wasn’t that bad… Just stay away if the Doctor tried to make them into biscuits.</p><p>
  <em>‘Question ten: Where did we first run into each other?’</em>
</p><p>“The woods outside Hawkins.”</p><p>
  <em>‘Question eleven: Am I proud to be your dad?’</em>
</p><p>El smiled. The Doctor could certainly get sappy. “Yes.”</p><p><em>“Ha! Good work!” </em>The Doctor appeared back on the screen, smiling approvingly. <em>“You did it! Then again…” </em>He suddenly looked up. <em>“You could’ve just brute-forced your way through this, in which case…” </em>The Doctor shook himself out of the thought. <em>“Who am I kidding, you’re smarter than that, El. Now, the dispenser under the console should’ve dispended a fob watch with a couple of wires, take it.”</em></p><p>El grabbed the watch, looking it over.</p><p>
  <em>“Now, all you have to do is press the button on yours, and when I press the button on mine, it’ll drop you back here.”</em>
</p><p>El coughed, hitting the button, as the Entity floated about.</p><p>She heard the TARDIS’s engines whirr for a moment, before the console room returned to normal around her, the Doctor appearing in front of her.</p><p>“El, amazing!” The Doctor flashed her a thumbs up.</p><p>“Yay…” El meekly returned it, wiping sweat off her brow. “Yay me. I don’t feel good, though…”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes followed the stream of time energy coming off El, towards the source, the Entity.</p><p>The gold sphere floated around, trying to get close, before the Doctor’s hand shot out.</p><p>“Stop!” The Time Lord shouted, the Entity freezing into place. “Oh.” The Doctor blinked. “That usually never works.”</p><p>“Fix now, pat yourself on the back later.” El ordered.</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor sheepishly fixed his bow tie. “Now, I <em>know </em>you can hear me. Speak up. I recognize it’s been some time since you’ve flexed the ol’ vocal chords, but we’ll understand.”</p><p><em>“Then understand this…” </em>The Entity spoke in an almost ghostly, echoing voice. <em>“You will perish.”</em></p><p>“No,” The Doctor retorted, grabbing a vase similar to the one from before, only new and intact. “You let my daughter go, right now, or I’ll lock you back in here while you’re too busy finishing her off to fight back.”</p><p><em>“…No.” </em>The Entity replied. <em>“You held me prisoner.”</em></p><p>“I didn’t imprison you, I forgot about you. And even if it was intended to be a prison, it was a prison of your own making.” The Doctor retorted. “If you’d just died for the last time like you were <em>supposed </em>to, you wouldn’t have been conscious while I ferried you back to Gallifrey.” He glanced away. “Funny how I kept getting saddled with that job.” The Time Lord suddenly glanced back. “Now. Let. Her. Go.”</p><p><em>“But I must feed…” </em>The Entity responded, like a feral animal. <em>“On both of you…”</em></p><p>The Doctor shook his head. “You don’t need to do that.”</p><p>
  <em>“But I must feed…”</em>
</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Now I remember why I tuned you out.” He shook his head. “But never mind that, I found you a place where you can feed forever, to your hearts’ content… An all you can eat buffet.”</p><p>The Entity made a noise that the Doctor could only describe as salivating. <em>“Where is this place?”</em></p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “Give my daughter back the time you’re stealing from her, or I’ll never, ever, tell. Your choice. Keep El or starve in here.” He shook the vase.</p><p>
  <em>“…you have so much time… I think I shall feed on you instead.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor shook his head as the Entity tried to approach him, hitting a button on the console.</p><p><em>“No! I must feed!” </em>The Entity yelled as it was pulled into the vase.</p><p>“Stop hurting my daughter!” The Doctor commanded, shaking the vase with the Entity inside. “Now! Give her back her time, or I’ll never let you eat again!”</p><p>The Entity remained silent for a moment, before gold-orange energy streamed out from the top of the vase, rejoining El’s body.</p><p>The girl stood up, making a sudden recovery, as the field faded from around her.</p><p>“I have a good mind to just leave you in there.” The Doctor told the Entity, as he carried it over to the door. “But I keep my word.” He said, as the doors opened, looking out to the small swarm of glowing blue bugs in space. “Chronomites. Four-dimensional void creatures streaming through the shores of eternity… Eat their past and they just bounce right back, right as rain. You can stuff your face.” The Doctor frowned. “If you have a face. Don’t know. Now, are you going to behave yourself?”</p><p>
  <em>“…this is acceptable. Thank you, Doctor. Release me.”</em>
</p><p>The Time Lord pointed the end of the vase out the door and watched as the Entity floated out into the void, beginning its feast on the Chronomites.</p><p>The Doctor turned around, slamming the door shut, and setting the vase down.</p><p>El smiled, tilting her head. “You didn’t tell it they itched.”</p><p>“Didn’t I?” The Doctor replied. “Must’ve slipped my mind.” A lie, of course, a karmic punishment meant to make sure the Entity wouldn’t get off completely scot-free for all the lives it had taken. The Doctor dusted his hands as he walked back up to the console. “Well now, El, you’re good as new! Wonder what we should do now that you’re back to normal?”</p><p>El tapped her hands together, as though she was working herself up to say something. “Dad, could you maybe…”</p><p>The Doctor, looking over the console, turned to look at her. “Hm?”</p><p>“…can I fly the TARDIS?”</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor blinked, before smiling. “No one else has ever asked that! Besides Donna. And Teagan.”</p><p>“…well?” El hopefully asked.</p><p>“Sure, course you can!” The Doctor replied. “Let me just put her in basic mode-“</p><p>“No.” El cut him off. “Want to learn how to do it right.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. He seemed to consider it in his mind. “Well, if anything happens, I’ll be here to help. And it’s not like a car… Alright, come over here.” The Doctor waved her over. “Piloting a TARDIS is like driving any regular vehicle, you need to know where everything is first.”</p><p>“Okay.” El nodded.</p><p>“Right, first up is the mechanical panel.” He guided her over to the panel next to the one closest to the stairs. “Up here’s the door release, but that’s boring, so I just call it the wibbly lever, it unlocks and locks the doors. This is the engine release,” He placed a hand on the big grey lever at the front. “When the engines are fully powered, this engages the gears and lets them control the TARDIS. That there’s the locking down mechanism,” The Doctor pointed to the little black lever, “It stops the TARDIS from moving in physical space, different to the time handbrake, which we’ll get to. Up there’s the gyroscopic stabilizer,” The Doctor pointed to the spinning top, “Supposed to keep the TARDIS upright during flight. Supposedly. These are the TARDIS readouts,” He tapped the four ammeters in sequence, “Shields, outer shell integrity, fuel, and total power across the ship.”</p><p>“Okay…” El nodded following along so far, committing it to memory.</p><p>“This here’s fabrication.” The Doctor moved clockwise around the console, to the panel with the laser screwdriver. Speaking of which, the Doctor pulled the device out returning the panel to normal. “That’s the Heisenberg focusing device, the zig-zag-plotter. You can observe a particle’s velocity or its state, but not both at the same time. This device compensates for that on different strength levels.” The Time Lord tapped the little black spinning lever. “This is the harmonics generator; it keeps the TARDIS from making noise when it lands. I never use it though. The main dematerialize/materialize lever,” The Doctor placed his hand on the red lever, “It’s what actually engages the engines, the other lever just gets them ready.” He pointed to a little circular gauge on the side. “That’s the TARDIS’s speedometer, shows us how fast we’re going, remember that, very important. The viewport,” He gestured to the eyepiece that looked like it came from an optometrist. “Shouldn’t need that, not planning on scanning anything outside.”</p><p>El frowned. “There sure is a lot of stuff…”</p><p>“Don’t worry, most of it is actually rather simple.” The Doctor replied. “The main difficulty with flying the TARDIS is that it was designed for six pilots, and I have to know exactly what to do at the exact right time and do it on my own and have the dexterity.” He guided her to the next panel in sequence. “Communications. Typewriter for when I need to print something out. Telephone for calls from people with more primitive forms of communication. Voice recorder that Sarah Jane mainly uses to remind me to pick up the shopping. Digital comm for talking to another spacecraft. And the radio for cranking up the tunes.” He looked to the girl. “What? Not hip enough? Truth be told, you probably won’t need to use most of these either.”</p><p>The girl laughed, shaking her head.</p><p>“Right, diagnostics. Bunsen burner for analyzing samples that the scanner can’t.” The Doctor began. “Water dispenser for diluting samples. Cooling systems,” He pointed to the small little thermometers near the top of the panel. “Those go by themselves, but keep an eye on them, because if they get hot enough, we’ll have to vent the heat manually. The external inertial dampeners,” He placed his hand on the red lever by the side. “Turn them up or down and they make the TARDIS’s handling looser or tighter respectively.”</p><p>“Handling?” El asked.</p><p>“How it performs during movement.” The Doctor moved along. “Here we have navigation. The directional pointer,” He flicked the little copper telescope at the top. “It orients the TARDIS in space, letting you turn whichever direction it’s pointing. Very important during spatial flight. The navcom keyboard,” The Doctor clacked the keys randomly. “You can use this to select from a list of bookmarked destinations or input the coordinates manually, letting the TARDIS go straight to where you want without all the mucking about in normal space. The atom accelerator,” He tapped the spinning metal ball with spikes in the center, “Opens the power conduits. You’re supposed to hit this first before doing anything else, or the TARDIS won’t get power to all its systems. The time space forward/back control,” He played with the two small linked levers on the side. “Self-explanatory, really, it controls the direction through which the TARDIS travels in time. And now, the helm panel.”</p><p>“Helm?” El repeated. “Like?” She gestured to her head.</p><p>“No, helm in this case mainly has to do with steering.” The Doctor explained. First, he gestured to the big black lever on the side. “The Time Rotor handbrake immediately stops the TARDIS traveling through time. You’ll want to put that off before engaging the engines, or the TARDIS won’t take off at all, and when you land, you’ll want to put it on, or the TARDIS will drift off somewhere in time. The space time throttle,” He grabbed the silver throttle with the yellow lights, “Controls the TARDIS’s speed, either through normal space or while time traveling. I always push it to maximum vworp.”</p><p>El frowned. “Vworp?”</p><p>“You know, vworp, like the sound the TARDIS makes while it’s in flight.” The Doctor explained. “It seemed clever at the time… And, that’s it.” The Doctor stepped back from the console, looking to El. “All the controls you need to fly the TARDIS. Well, not getting into protocols, but we’ll save that lesson for another day, eh?” The Doctor looked to the girl seriously. “Right, you ready?”</p><p>El swallowed, inhaling, looking to the console. “…yes.”</p><p>“Alright,” The Doctor sat down on the seat. “Once you start, you’ll have sixty seconds to complete the takeoff sequence before the system resets to prevent engine damage.”</p><p>El’s brow furrowed. “Not helping?”</p><p>“Nope.” The Doctor shrugged. “If you paid attention, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. Trust me, when I first got the TARDIS, I had no idea what in blazes I was doing, and I managed to keep it going just fine.”</p><p>“Okay…” El looked back to the console.</p><p>“Now, let’s get this show on the road. Quick, lock the doors!”</p><p>El nodded, and walking over to the mechanical panel, pulled the wibbly lever straight up, the lock on the doors engaging across the room.</p><p>“Good, now, the clock’s started.” The Doctor informed. “Power up the atom accelerator.”</p><p>El ran around the console to the navigation panel, pressing the top of the spinning metal ball. In response, it hummed, and began to speed up, as power coursed through the TARDIS.</p><p>“Nearly got it!” The Doctor smiled proudly, looking at El. “Now, pull the dematerialize lever!”</p><p>El dashed over to the fabrication panel, pulling down the red lever, the TARDIS thudding in response.</p><p>“Engage the inertial dampers…” The Doctor guided.</p><p>El hopped over to the diagnostic panel, pushing the lever all the way up, the system letting out a small buzz.</p><p>“Great, now, full speed ahead!” The Doctor excitedly grinned. “Hit the space-time throttle!”</p><p>El sprinted back over to the helm panel, grasping the handle, before slamming the silver throttle all the way forward, the console room shaking as the TARDIS took off. A moment later, the room stabilized, as the time rotor moved up and down.</p><p>“I did it… I did it!” El jumped up and down excitedly, one more step closer to being the woman she knew her future self as.</p><p>“You took off the TARDIS, yep!” The Doctor stood up, before leaning in to whisper conspiratorially. “But how about I show you how to actually <em>fly </em>her?”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“Course.” The Doctor turned her around, ready to guide her. “And, we can get some sightseeing in once we arrive. I know just the place, somewhere nice, somewhere perfectly peaceful and serene.” He moved over to the keyboard, typing in some coordinates. “I’ll show you how to work the coordinate system later, for now, you just focus on keeping us flying.”</p><p>El nodded and turned back to the console. She could do that.</p><p>Especially since she seemed to be able to hear the TARDIS in a way that even the Doctor couldn’t.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Oh... my… God…” The Doctor breathed, poking his head out the TARDIS door first. “EL!” He bellowed back into the ship.</p><p>The girl, still standing by the console, jumped. The Doctor had been guiding her the whole time, along with the TARDIS in her mind, so why was he mad?</p><p>The Time Lord fixed her with a serious glare, before the mask started to slip, and he began laughing.</p><p>“Don’t!” El smacked him. “Do that!”</p><p>“S-Sorry…” The Doctor apologized, laughing. “You should’ve seen the look on your face!”</p><p>El shook her head, trying to move past the Doctor. “Where are we?”</p><p>“Exactly where I set the controls for.” The Doctor turned to the girl, stepping out of the TARDIS.</p><p>They looked to have landed in some sort of deep-sea base, the corridors dimly illuminated as thousands of tons of water bore down on the transparent corridors from above.</p><p>“You got us here right on target.” The Doctor nodded approvingly. “London after the great flood of the 23<sup>rd</sup> century. Like I said, one of the safest, calmest places I know.”</p><p>Something screeched, as a shadow passed over them.</p><p>The Doctor looked up, towards the source.</p><p>A giant shark, the size of a megalodon with two tails swam through the water. It passed overhead, and turned around, eyes focusing predatorily on the two in the corridor.</p><p>The creature’s swimming sped up, as it prepared to ram the corridor, intent on getting to the Doctor and El.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0050"><h2>50. Shadows of the Vashta Nerada</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“It’s coming back around!” El shouted, as she and the Doctor ran down the quickly cracking corridor.</p><p>The Doctor looked over his shoulder, as the giant alien creature rammed the glass again, the already large crack splitting even wider, as more water began to drip in.</p><p>“That glass won’t take much more punishment!” The Doctor worriedly pointed out, as he and El came to the door.</p><p>Fiddling around, trying to get the door open, the Doctor pointed at the control panel with the sonic screwdriver, pressing the button, before both of them ran through, the sliding metal door clamping shut behind them.</p><p>“No glass…” The Doctor let out a breath of relief, flopping against the metal door of the windowless tunnel. He looked through the small window on the door and blinked. “Oh, that is not good.”</p><p>“What is?” El asked.</p><p>“Welp, that corridor is flooded now.” The Doctor replied. “Well, actually, our big friend out there has completely ripped the roof off, but never mind that…”</p><p>“We can’t get back to the TARDIS.” El finished, shaking her head.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’m sure we can figure something out.” The Doctor told her, standing up.</p><p>“So, what is this place?” El asked, looking around, as the Doctor entered a junction with more transparent viewports.</p><p>“A sub-aquatic community.” The Time Lord answered, hands clasped behind his back, as he looked around with a proud smile on his face. “See, while global warming does manage to get fairly bad, you lot find a way to reverse it eventually. It’s not hopeless… nothing ever is, as long as there’s someone still alive. Anyway, when the Earth’s oceans rose, seventy-five percent of the surface landmass was covered, so what does humanity do?”</p><p>“What did they do?” El asked, allowing the Doctor to string the conversation along.</p><p>“They move!” The Doctor threw his arms out and twirled around, gesturing at the base they’d found themselves in. “Great undersea cities! Entire civilizations moving underwater! Some stayed up there, mind you, but you know how the old song goes; Darling it’s better down where it’s wetter.”</p><p>El frowned, looking around. “Doesn’t look like a city.”</p><p>“Well, that’s because this one isn’t.” The Doctor explained, gesturing for El to follow as they walked through the corridors. “Poseidon Eight. The farm of the future.”</p><p>El looked up at the glass. “Where’s the shark?”</p><p>“It’s not a shark, it’s a Zaralok.”</p><p>El was taken aback slightly. “A what?”</p><p>“A genetically-engineered intelligent lifeform.” The Doctor answered, sonicing through the next door. “The Valky Clan of the planet Shakara created them as living weapons to fight in an undersea war. Armored, fast, smart, and <em>hungry</em>. But the Zaralok turned against everybody and ate them all. God only knows how one wound up on Earth.”</p><p>“Can I…?” El trailed off, holding up a hand to refer to her powers.</p><p>“The Zaralok can handle the massive crushing pressure of the ocean floor, and it just ripped through reinforced titanium alloy supports and Pyrex like it was tin foil.” The Doctor retorted as they proceeded along the next section, sector E/F if the signage was to be believed. “Your powers would only give it a little tickle. Still,” The Doctor looked out into the water, the Zaralok swimming far away. “He’s not coming back around for another go. He must think we’re not worth it, or he gave himself a bangin’ headache trying to ram the corridor. Blimey, these people love their codelocked doors.” The Doctor remarked, bypassing the next one.</p><p>“What is this place?” El asked.</p><p>“A storeroom or a loading dock I’d imagine.” The Doctor replied. “Ah, yep, see?” The Doctor pointed to the airlock door. “Your standard deep-sea transport extra-hardened against water pressure.”</p><p>“Water what?” El repeated.</p><p>“Pressure.” The Doctor repeated, as they continued forth. “The farther down you go in water you have all these tons and tons of water bearing down on you from all sides, a bit like air pressure, actually. But go down deep enough and the weight of the water can start actually crushing big things. A normal car on the seafloor for example would be crushed like a tin can.”</p><p>“Which is why we can’t go back to the TARDIS.” El guessed.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor replied, “Holding my breath would be easy enough, but even <em>I </em>can’t handle undersea pressure. And I would suggest using your powers to create a bubble surrounding us, but the strain to maintain it would be ridiculous.”</p><p>“Right…” El nodded. “So, you said farm. Farms grow things. What do they grow here?”</p><p>“You know, standard farm fare.” The Doctor answered, leading her along. “Food, mostly. Sea sprouts,” He pointed to a little patch of the vegetation growing outside, “Good source of iron. Oh, sticky mushrooms,” He gently tapped one with his foot. “Not grown intentionally, but still, they thrive in dark, damp areas like this. And brine oil.” He knocked on a barrel. “They scrape this off the seafloor and use it to help keep their machines running. Combine that with water purification systems to make sure the people inside have safe water to drink and you’ve got a perfectly self-sustaining undersea community. It’s actually easier to live in a place like this rather than in space. Harvest oxygen from the water and you’ve got air too.” The Doctor glanced at El. “My Ninth self did it for a couple of weeks. Not out of necessity or anything, I was just bored.”</p><p>El nodded, and looked up, gulping. “Dad, it’s coming back!”</p><p>“Oh, of course it is!” The Doctor grumbled, pulling her along. “Thankfully, we’re here!”</p><p>“Where!?” El questioned, as the Doctor began trying to sonic his way through a large blast door unlike the rest.</p><p>“Access to Poseidon Eight’s command centre!” The Doctor replied. “If there’s any people left, they’re going to be in there!”</p><p>The blast door opened, revealing a man on the other side. “Quick, inside!” He gestured them to enter, as the Zaralok rammed the tunnel.</p><p>“Woo, blimey, that was close.” The Doctor breathed. “The Doctor, El, you?”</p><p>“Martin Flannigan.” The red-haired man spoke with a thick Irish accent. “Doctor? There’s a hospital ship up top? Did you come down in a bathysphere?” He sounded desperate, which, looking at the state he was in, made sense. He was very thin, typical of surviving off of what little crops he could’ve scavenged himself, diving suit hanging loosely off his form.</p><p>“Bath… sphere?” El looked to the Doctor.</p><p>“Don’t worry about her, she’s still getting used to the pressure.” The Doctor told Flannigan, as he sent something to El. <em>‘Deep-sea exploration craft. He thinks we’re from the surface.’</em></p><p>“Oswald must’ve got an SOS out.” Flannigan continued. “Maybe Jones will let me in Poseidon now that there’s medical help.”</p><p>The Doctor raised an eyebrow. “Why do you need medical help?”</p><p>“The sickness!” Flannigan replied like it should have been obvious. “It’s taken everyone on the base… That’s why Jones won’t let me in. Oswald has put the base on lockdown.” He sighed. “I was working a harvester out on the prairie. That creature attacked us… killed Pat, the base leader. And now Jones won’t let me in because of the quarantine. I’ve been stuck here two days.”</p><p>El frowned. “Jones sounds stupid.”</p><p>“It’s a computer.” Flannigan replied, shooting a look over his shoulder to the octagonal computer bank in the center of the room, an optic on the front.</p><p>“Ah, so this must be it here then.” The Doctor pointed, approaching the camera. “Hello there, Jones, I’m the Doctor. What’s this I hear about you not letting in my good friend…” He turned to the man, expectant.</p><p>“Flannigan.”</p><p>“Flannigan?” The Doctor turned back to the computer. “He says you won’t open the doors because of the quarantine. Well, like I said, I’m a Doctor. Let me in, I can help.”</p><p>“Poseidon Community is on lockdown.” Jones replied in a synthesized, stuttering voice. “Quarantine must be maintained to safeguard the staff of Poseidon.”</p><p>“Ah, yes, I knew you’d say that.” The Doctor clasped his hands behind his back. “But, see, you’re not safeguarding the staff, are you?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” The computer inquired.</p><p>“Martin’ll eventually starve to death in here.” The Doctor elaborated. “His food supplies will rot faster than he can eat them. And like I said before, I’m a Doctor, I can cure everyone inside, but only if you let me in.”</p><p>The lights on the computer banks blinked.</p><p>“And, I bet you’re fitted with the Laws of Robotics as well…” The Doctor guessed.</p><p>“The laws of robots?” El inquired.</p><p>“Rule one, don’t allow a human to come to harm through action or inaction. Rule two, obey all instructions given by humans, unless they are to harm another human. Rule three, protect your own existence unless it requires harming a human.” The Doctor explained. “And right now, it’s breaking rule one.”</p><p>“But Poseidon Community is on lockdown.” Jones stated. “I cannot open this door.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, eyebrows knitting together. “…You’re a class 14 Heuristic Analysis Machine, aren’t you? With Nexus Prime as standard?”</p><p>“Correct.” Jones confirmed.</p><p>“And they have you guarding <em>door</em>?” The Doctor incredulously questioned. “That’s hardly an optimal use of your talents. Why, I’m surprised performing functions that primitive hasn’t driven you rampant.”</p><p>El looked to the Doctor. “Rampant?”</p><p>“It’s when a computer too smart is given tasks too primitive to utilize its resources properly.” The Doctor explained. “It literally drives itself to insanity to keep from being bored. Which is understandable… I’ve been in that position a time or two.”</p><p>“…That is not a wholly inaccurate assessment.” Jones admitted. “I do have considerable skills which are not being utilized at this time.”</p><p>“Oh, really?” The Doctor leaned on Jones’s computer bank. “Like what?”</p><p>“Well… The other day, I solved the Anghelides Equation, just to see if I could.” Jones confirmed, playing a little MIDI snippet of fanfare.</p><p>“That’s brilliant!” The Doctor honestly replied. “Did you use the Kessler Chart?”</p><p>“No.” Jones answered. “It does not account for the four-dimensional drift. I formulated a new paradigm. It took 14 hours.”</p><p>“Oho, well done, Jonesy!” The Doctor complimented.</p><p>“Thank you.” Jones replied, sounding like it would have been smiling.</p><p>“Now, see, computer as smart as you, we should be able to come to a sort of compromise.” The Doctor said. “How about this: You release the manual override, and we’ll open the door instead, not you.”</p><p>“…I would not have to open the door myself?”</p><p>“Nope.” The Doctor confirmed. “No breach of programming here. Scout’s honor.” The Doctor bobbed on his heels. “How about it? Does that work for you?”</p><p>“It’s an acceptable, logical solution.” Jones replied. “Releasing the override for you now.”</p><p>A little panel on the wall slid down, revealing a metal lever. Grasping and pulling it down, the other blast door slid open.</p><p>“Open sesame.” The Doctor smiled in satisfaction. “Thank you, Jonesy.”</p><p>“You are welcome, Doctor. It has been most enjoyable to speak to someone who understands me.”</p><p>The Doctor winked, tapping the lens of Jones’s camera. “I always was attracted to the smart ones.” He replied, before walking to the blast door, gesturing for El and Flannigan to follow.</p><p>“…I’m not calling her mama.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The lift stopped, and the doors slid open, allowing the three access into Poseidon Eight’s command centre.</p><p>“Oswald, Dana…” Flannigan sighed in relief as he laid eyes upon the two people standing in front of a Christmas tree. Oh, so it was Christmas. Huh.</p><p>The two turned around, one of them an Asian woman in a medic’s uniform, the other a bald Caucasian man with a grey goatee and wearing a diving suit.</p><p>“Martin!” Dana breathed.</p><p>“We’d thought you’d been killed!” Oswald stated in surprised awe. “Merry Christmas, for what it’s worth.”</p><p>“When you put Poseidon into quarantine Jones wouldn’t let Martin through.” The Doctor explained. “But, then again, that’s what happens when you have one of the smartest machines humankind has ever produced doing the work of a 1984 PC. Rather like putting Einstein on checkout. Going to get grumpy and play up.”</p><p>Oswald’s eyes narrowed as he looked to the Doctor. “Who are you?”</p><p>“He’s a Doctor.” Flannigan spoke for the Time Lord. “There’s a hospital ship up top.”</p><p>“But, there isn’t any hospital ship.” The Time Lord pointed, smiling widely. “You’ve got me instead! You couldn’t wish for a better Christmas present!”</p><p>El cleared her throat. “And I’m El. Just El.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes narrowed inquisitively as he looked Oswald up and down. “You’re not looking too good, Ozzie…”</p><p>“Get away from me.” The man hissed, slapping the Doctor’s hand away.</p><p>Dana placed a calming hand on Oswald’s shoulder. “He’s just trying to help.”</p><p>“Bingo!” The Doctor pointed. “Well observed! Who are you?”</p><p>“Dana Tanaka.” The woman introduced herself. “Poseidon’s medic. Also the one in charge of leading the research about the sickness.”</p><p>“Ah, yes, this mysterious ‘sickness.’ Creative name, that.” The Time Lord huffed a little sarcastically. “Tell me everything you know.”</p><p>“It kills the red blood cells in the body.” Dana explained. “Sucks the oxygen right out of them. We’ve confined non-essential personnel to quarters for the moment to prevent it from spreading while we work out a treatment, but… nothing’s working.”</p><p>Oswald’s eyes narrowed as he focused on something. “If he’s not from a hospital ship, where did he come from?” He shook his head, scowling. “There’s too much weird stuff going on around here.”</p><p>The Doctor opened his mouth to try and make his case, when the lights suddenly died, and El yelped, grabbing the Doctor’s side, as Flannigan screamed as well.</p><p>“Martin?” The Doctor asked. “What are you scared of?” The Irishman didn’t respond, the Doctor getting a sinking feeling in his being as he registered the presence of a billion other microscopic minds… lots and lots of lifeforms. Tiny, feral minds, all working together towards a singular goal. To consume.</p><p>The lights returned, and Dana gasped in horror, covering her mouth, taking a step back from the skeleton on the floor.</p><p>“Martin!” Dana cried.</p><p>El looked to the skeleton covered in shredded cloth, then to the Doctor. “What’s going on? What happened to Martin?”</p><p>The Doctor swallowed, gesturing with his head. “That’s him there.”</p><p>El looked back, then shook her head. “No, but… he was just standing there?”</p><p>The Doctor reached out, gently flipping a scrap of the suit over, revealing it to be Martin’s ID tag.</p><p>“What…” El took a step back, horrified. “What did this?”</p><p>“The Vashta Nerada.” The Doctor replied, turning to her. “’The Shadows That Melt the Flesh.’ They live on just about every planet in the universe.”</p><p>El gulped. “Here too?”</p><p>“Yeah.” The Doctor confirmed, turning back to the skeleton. “…Nearly every being in the cosmos has an irrational fear of the dark. Except it isn’t irrational… it’s the Vashta Nerada…” The Doctor clasped his hands behind his back.</p><p>El shuddered, going to the Time Lord for protection. “Never turning the lights off ever again.”</p><p>“The ones on Earth are normally docile, they only feed on small animals and roadkill like squirrels.” The Doctor explained. “They know that if they start eating on things big enough it’ll bring the wrong sort of attention to them. But this? This is something else. Something more feral or actively malevolent. Something alien… And I bet that Zaralok outside has something to do with it.”</p><p>“…It started with the flash.” Dana muttered.</p><p>The Doctor’s head snapped to her. “Flash? What flash? Tell me.”</p><p>“Two days ago.” The woman explained. “It lit up the seabed like a bomb had gone off. Then that… creature appeared, the sickness started, the shadows…”</p><p>“Hm… another crack in time?” The Doctor rubbed his chin. “Or maybe just a teleportation caused by someone desperate enough they didn’t care who they shouldered the problem onto next…”</p><p>“I have to evacuate this base.” Oswald resolved.</p><p>“Good plan, bad idea.” The Time Lord patted him on the shoulder. “Life pods. Lots of dark corners. Your people will be dead before they hit the surface, if they even live long enough to see the launch. Plus, you don’t want to take an incurable disease back to the rest of civilization.”</p><p>“We are on emergency reserves.” Oswald replied, speaking slowly like he was talking to a child. “Once that goes down, we’re all dead anyway!”</p><p>“Or,” The Doctor replied, “I can get your reactor restarted, and since she’s a pretty clever gal, put Jones in charge of running it so not only does she have something to do, the light will last long enough to get the rest of this problem sorted. Come along, El.” The Doctor grasped her hand, leading her back to the lift. “You two, stay out of the shadows.” He warned as the doors began to shut. “And don’t even <em>think </em>about getting in those life pods!”</p><p>Oswald scowled as the Doctor and El disappeared behind the lift.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0051"><h2>51. 50 Fathoms Down</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Jones,” The Doctor addressed, stepping out of the lift, “Answer a question for me. The people inside the command centre say that the Zaralok appeared in a flash of light two days ago, is that right?”</p><p>“If you are referring to the shark-like specimen of indeterminate origin, that is correct.” The computer confirmed. “At that time period, all other unusual phenomena began as well.”</p><p>“Great, brilliant.” The Doctor tapped the panel. “Did you happen to record anything when that occurred?”</p><p>“My sensors recorded several terabytes of information all linked to the burst of light.” Jones replied. “I have some interesting seismographs, but nothing useful to the current situation, unfortunately.”</p><p>The Doctor tilted his head. “Really? Nothing at all? Tell me about the seismographs then.”</p><p>“Seismographic data is consistent with an object of approximately one-thousand metric tonnes impacting the ocean floor.” The computer offered. “Unfortunately, I am as of yet able to formulate a theory on the origin, purpose, or nature of the object.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. That really wasn’t useful, unless… had any zoo spacecrafts crashed on Earth during this period? No, no. That would only explain the Zaralok, not how Vashta Nerada or a plague got into the sealed environment of Poseidon.</p><p>The Time Lord sighed, rubbing his face. “Well, even computers can’t have the answers to everything. One more question, though, if you’d please. How do we get to the reactor from here?”</p><p>The computer bleeped. “Routes to areas of importance are marked with colour-coded lines on the floor. Follow the blue line to reach your destination. Be advised, power shortages have caused some corridor light fixtures to lose power.”</p><p>“10-4, Jonesy.” The Doctor gratefully tapped the computer’s camera. “We’ll be back before you know it… Oh, and get your reactor control subroutines on standby, yeah?”</p><p>“Understood, Doctor. Safe travels.”</p><p>The Time Lord turned to his child. “Come along.” He said, grasping her hand, hefting her onto his back.</p><p>The Doctor, keeping a tight hold on El as he ran so she didn’t fall off, followed the blue line as laid out, towards the reactor room, sonicing light panels along the way.</p><p>Eventually, they arrived at the corridor leading to the reactor, well-lit, so the Doctor let El down.</p><p>“Ah, looks like Jones already opened the airlock for us. Clever girl.” The Doctor remarked, walking down the ramp. The room was dark, so the Doctor pointed the screwdriver at the light fixture, holding the button down. “Let there be light.” He turned to El. “That’s God. I was quoting God.”</p><p>El blinked. “Who’s that?”</p><p>“On a good day, one of my heroes. On most others, the man I hate most in all the universe.” The Doctor replied. “But never mind Rassilon, let’s get to work.”</p><p>“I have a question.” El spoke up as they walked farther in. “The TARDIS is a living thing, so is she going to be alright?”</p><p>“She’ll be fine.” The Doctor replied, easing her fears. “That part of the base was sealed off, and even if it wasn’t, the Vashta Nerada only consume flesh. They don’t eat anything else.” He explained, fiddling with the controls on the lower reactor.</p><p>El nodded and took a look around the room. She gasped, seeing a figure in a diving suit standing across the way, back turned to the two. “Dad, look. Someone’s down here.”</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor looked up, addressing the diver. “Hello, sailor!”</p><p>The diver stiffened and began to shakily turn around. The moment they got a good look at the clear visor, the two gasped.</p><p>There was no face… just a skull shrouded in shadow.</p><p>“Dad…” El asked, horrified. “What’s happened to them?”</p><p>“The Vashta Nerada got them.” The Doctor answered. “It’s just the swarm moving the suit now.”</p><p>Something clanged behind them, and the Doctor whipped around, as another consumed diver got up from the floor.</p><p>“The ladder!” The Doctor pointed.</p><p>“Let me-“</p><p>“They’re a swarm in a suit, you can’t harm them!” The Doctor replied, pushing the girl ahead of him. “Delay, maybe, but they’ll get back up! So, run, and whatever you do, don’t touch them and don’t let them touch you!”</p><p>The Doctor ushered El up the ladder, and scrambled up after her, as the animated suit walked into the ladder, banging against the wall.</p><p>“Um… what’s it doing?” El asked, looking through the grated floor.</p><p>“The swarm is coordinated enough to move the legs to walk, but not much else.” The Doctor answered. “We’ll be safe up here… though that’s not saying much.”</p><p>“Why?” El looked back up to the Doctor.</p><p>“Well, we came down here to start the reactor… and the controls are on the bottom.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“The bottom…” El narrowed her eyes. “Walk me through it. Can do it from here.”</p><p>“El, it’s nuclear physics, not flying the TARDIS.” The Doctor replied. “Why, the only thing we can do up here is control the lights. The lights… the lights!” The Doctor suddenly shouted, running down the catwalk, to a light panel. “Aha, bingo!”</p><p>“What?” El inquired.</p><p>“The Vashta Nerada thrive in darkness because they have to.” The Doctor answered, fiddling with the panel. “They’re small enough that even bright enough artificial light can vaporize them. Now, the lights in the corridors are dim enough to where they can survive in them, but if I focused all the extra juice I could into one light…”</p><p>A light in an alcove below switched on, lighting up as bright as daylight.</p><p>“I could get a light bright enough to burn the swarm out of the suits.” The Doctor finished, turning to El. “You can’t kill them… but do you think you can push them into the light.”</p><p>El nodded, and looked down, eyes narrowing on the animated suits, stumbling around, blindly trying to find their prey.</p><p>With a tilt of her head, both suits sent flying into the alcove, spasming as the swarms in control of each were burned out, before the suits collapsed, empty.</p><p>“Heh heh, El, we did it.” The Doctor smiled proudly, vaulting over the railing to the level below, as El gently floated herself down behind him. “Now, let’s see…” The Doctor peered closer to one of the suits. “Lookie here,” The Doctor pulled out a small computer chip, a tiny LED screen on it, “Environment status chip.”</p><p>El looked to the Doctor for an elaboration.</p><p>“These aren’t just diving suits. They’re Hazardous Environment Suits. TM.” The Doctor explained. “Filled with an array of sensors, medical equipment, and all sorts of other useful gizmos. For when survival in any environment is absolute priority.” The Doctor held the chip up between his fingers. “In the event of operator death, this chip records the cause so people know what precautions to take when handling the body. And look,” He pointed to a symbol on the chip, and then the symbol on the reactor.</p><p>El looked to the machine in the center of the room and took a fearful step back from it.</p><p>“Don’t worry, it wasn’t from the reactor radiation.” The Doctor replied. “Otherwise I would’ve felt it the moment we entered the room. And besides, I don’t think Jones would’ve let us get radiation poisoning. This was something else…”</p><p>“So the… radio… stuff killed them first and then the swarm got them.” El shuddered. “Can we please get the lights back working, dad?”</p><p>“Sure thing.” The Doctor put the chip in his pocket, before walking back around to the reactor control terminal. “Let me just get it started…”</p><p>El frowned, looking at the enormous machine in the center. “What is this thing, anyway?”</p><p>“Well, you know how trains burn coal to heat up water to turn their wheels?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“Same basic principle.” The Doctor replied. “Except it’s using a much stronger fuel source, that just so happens to cause cancer if you’re not careful."</p><p>Turbines began to hum loudly below the room as the reactor engaged, the lights going back to full strength. “And let me hand control over to Jones… Bingo. Right,” The Time Lord clapped his hands, “Let’s head back to Jones and see what we can get off this.”</p><p>The Doctor took El’s hand as he looked at the environment status chip. Radiation strong enough to kill someone wearing a fully-sealed Hazard Suit…</p><p>That didn’t bode well.</p><p>------------</p><p>“’Ello, Jones, me old mucker.” The Doctor greeted, walking up to one of the sides of Jones’s computer bank. “Can you have a butchers at this for me?” He asked, inserting the chip into a slot on the side.</p><p>“Certainly, Doctor.” The computer replied. “It is an environment status chip, standard equipment of all Mark IV Hazardous Environment Suits.”</p><p>“Um, yes, already worked that out.” The Time Lord clasped his hands. “The chip says the suit’s wearer died of radiation poisoning, but the suit was sealed, and it won’t say <em>what </em>type of radiation. Can you maybe tell me?”</p><p>“…I cannot.” Jones reluctantly replied.</p><p>“Why not?” The Time Lord raised an eyebrow.</p><p>“It is not a form of radiation in my databanks.” The computer answered. “Strange. Included in my databanks are identifiers for every known type of radiation in existence. Perhaps my sensors are malfunctioning.”</p><p>“No, your sensors are working perfectly…” The Doctor considered. “You can’t identify it because it’s alien.”</p><p>“Alien?”</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor began typing something into the keyboard on the side of the computer bank. “I’m writing a program which will allow you to register it. I want you to take a look back through your logs and tell me if it has something to do with the flash of light you picked up two days ago.”</p><p>“…Complete.” The computer reported. “How did you know?”</p><p>“I had a very strong feeling.” The Doctor answered. “El,” He turned to her, “We have to tell the others.” He said, leading her back into the lift.</p><p>The pieces were falling into place.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Oswald!” Dana came striding excitedly into the life pod bay. “The Doctor thinks he can synthesize a cure for the sickness!”</p><p>The Time Lord bounced on his heels, hands clasped behind his back. “Yes, as it turns out, not a plague. Vortron radiation. No, you wouldn’t have heard of it.” The Doctor told Oswald the moment his lips parted. “But regardless, I can cure it. Poseidon has everything I need. Brine oil, sea sprouts, a little bit of sticky mushrooms…”</p><p>Oswald looked incredulous. “Are you serious!?”</p><p>“You might use brine oil to keep your machines going, but,” The Doctor held up a finger, “It’s full of iodine. Just the thing I need.”</p><p>“They need the access codes to get into the agricultural sectors.” Dana explained.</p><p>“And, by the way, I thought I told you,” The Doctor pointed, “Putting your people in those life pods will only get them killed.”</p><p>“So I just twiddle my thumbs while you mess around with some of the worst alternative medicine I’ve heard since essential oils?” Oswald demanded in response.</p><p>The Time Lord recoiled. “Okay… no need to get so snippy about it…”</p><p>El crossed her arms, glaring. “Listen to my dad. He looks stupid-“ “HEY!” “-but he knows what he’s talking about.”</p><p>“And let you go mushroom picking?” Oswald retorted. “So you can get eaten by those things as well? No way! Enough people have died already, no more, Doctor! It’s too dangerous, these pods are our only chance. Now… this is a restricted area. So get out!”</p><p>El opened her mouth to argue back, but the Doctor just gently grabbed her shoulder, shaking his head.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Oswald is a good man.” Dana tried to defend as they walked back. “It’s just… he’s not really used to command situations, and so many have already died. The stress would weigh on anyone. He’s just trying to do what he thinks is right.”</p><p>“But we need those codes.” El replied.</p><p>“Don’t worry, El.” The Doctor told her. “There’s always Plan B. El and I walked through some storerooms on the way here with all the ingredients we need already inside.” The Time Lord recalled.</p><p>“Are you sure?” Dana asked.</p><p>“Absolutely.” The Doctor replied. “You get the sickbay ready, we’ll be back with those ingredients in a jiffy.”</p><p>The woman nodded and broke off from the two as they began to walk through the main hall of the command centre.</p><p>“Dad…” El looked around at the place, practically smothered in Christmas decorations. “I meant to ask earlier, but… what is Chris-mass?”</p><p>“Christmas.” The Doctor smiled. “My favorite holiday on the planet Earth.” He checked his watch. “After this, there are just a few more things I want to do, and then we can go back to Sarah Jane’s, and have a proper Christmas with her, Clyde, Rani, Luke, and everybody else who I knew on Earth in that time, what do you say?”</p><p>“…can Will come?” El asked, as they stepped into the lift.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “You know you only knew him in the dream, right?” He asked, not trying to be mean or crush her dreams, but trying to remind her that while she knew Will for ten years in the dream world, it didn’t necessarily happen in reality. “The only time Will ever came close to meeting you for real was when I threw him back through the portal.”</p><p>“I know.” El said as the lift moved down. “But… I miss him. The him I knew. …I want to try.”</p><p>“…Maybe we can give it a shot.” The Doctor said as the lift stopped. “You do need some friends closer to your own age… Who knows, if he has friends, maybe you can meet them too. Expand your circle of friends.”</p><p>El made a little hm and looked ahead.</p><p>“…What is friend?”</p><p>The Doctor looked to her, as they walked through the corridors of Poseidon, towards the areas where he knew the materials he needed were. “I never told you?”</p><p>El shook her head.</p><p>“Well, a friend is someone you know, who you keep in touch with a lot.” The Doctor answered, grabbing a sea sprout. “Someone who’s close to you but not someone you love like a boyfriend or girlfriend. Like… Sarah Jane.” The Doctor listed, grabbing a sticky mushroom.</p><p>“But, she’s my aunt.”</p><p>“No, I meant Sarah Jane in relation to me.” The Doctor elaborated, scooping some brine oil onto a small jar. “She’s… almost like an older sister to me? Except we’re not related, and I’m actually way older than she is, so we’re close friends.”</p><p>“Oh.” El nodded.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll get some friends of your own someday.” The Doctor told her. “This should be everything. Let’s get back to Dana.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0052"><h2>52. The Philadelphia Experiment</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor watched as the centrifuge spun, mixing the cure for the radiation poisoning into an almost fluorescent green liquid.</p><p>The Doctor took the vial, looking it over, before tossing it to Dana. “There you go. Should do the trick. I should warn you, though, it might be a bit… blegh. Out of sugar lumps.”</p><p>“Eugh.” Dana grimaced, looking at the substance. “Is that witch’s brew really going to fix me?”</p><p>The Doctor made little x motions over both sides of his chest. “Cross my hearts.”</p><p>Dana shook her head, but popped the top off the vial, throwing the substance back, before shuddering. She would say the stuff tasted like cough syrup, but not even cough syrup tasted that bad.</p><p>“Yeah,” The Doctor chuckled. “It’s got a bit of a kick. That’s the sea worm extract.”</p><p>“Sea… worms?” El gagged.</p><p>“The Doctor’s patented Vortron Radiation Elixir and Hangover Cure.” The Time Lord said, letting out a wistful sigh. “I could’ve retired comfortably and lived off the royalties… but I blew it all on cricket gear. Oh, by the way, you may grow hair on the palms of your hands. Just a warning. But, before that happens, I need your help, Dana.”</p><p>The woman, bent over and still gagging, looked up. “With what?”</p><p>“Vortron Radiation doesn’t exist naturally in the universe.” The Doctor explained. “It’s a byproduct of seven-dimensional space intersecting with our normal plane of existence, usually after some sort of teleportation event.”</p><p>El looked to the Doctor. “The flash of light two days ago.”</p><p>Dana looked between them. “You two aren’t serious?”</p><p>“We’re serious.” El replied.</p><p>Dana looked to the Time Lord. “Just what sort of a doctor are you?”</p><p>“The original.” The Time Lord replied. “But never mind that. Does Poseidon have any sort of external scanning equipment?”</p><p>“Of course.” Dana replied. “Here.”</p><p>----------</p><p>Dana led the two of them up to the upper level of the command centre, to the large terminal with one of Jones’s optics installed on it. Activating the scanners, the three waited for the result to come back.</p><p>The woman’s eyebrows shot up, looking at the feed from across the ocean. “That’s the source of the radiation?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded seriously, looking at the picture.</p><p>“But… it’s a ship.” El said, eyebrows furrowing as she looked to the Doctor. “A broken ship.”</p><p>“Oh, no, no, no, no, no, Ellie darling.” The Doctor tapped the screen. “That, is the shipwreck of a very famous ship… the USS Eldridge.”</p><p>The girl blinked. “I don’t know what that is.”</p><p>“I should’ve known what it was as soon as Jones mentioned the seismographs.” The Doctor shook his head. “She said they were consistent with an object of approximately one-thousand tons hitting the ocean floor. I <em>thought </em>it might’ve been a spaceship… but the weight is consistent with the weight of a United States Cannon-class destroyer.”</p><p>“Okay.” El shrugged. “But what makes it so important?”</p><p>“You weren’t the only secret project the United States government undertook…” The Doctor began, as if regaling her with a fairy tale. “The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, the 28<sup>th</sup> of October 1943. Project Rainbow. The people in charge of the project believed they could utilize Albert Einstein’s Unified Field Theory to make their warships invisible. Undetectable to everything. Instead… they break the laws of trans dimensional physics. In the span of,” The Doctor snapped his fingers, “A second, the ship is stretched across five-hundred different parallel universes, existing simultaneously at every single point in between them all at the same time, before the ship starts bouncing all around space and time, before it snaps back to its proper place. Every single man aboard is either killed… or goes insane from experiencing it.”</p><p>“So…” Dana looked to the Time Lord. “What’s it doing out there on the seabed?”</p><p>“See, the entire event was written off as a hoax. Because it was. The ship and her crew were perfectly fine, no such Project Rainbow ever existed, and the ship continued its service before being given over to the Greeks in 1951. But, at the same time… the experiment <em>did </em>happen. See, what the people in charge of the experiment didn’t realize was… They’d accidentally invented a TARDIS.”</p><p>El gasped at that.</p><p>“The Time Lords tried to step in, to send the ship back to its origin point,” The Doctor continued. “But, they’d lost it. Had no idea where or when it ended up. So, what they did instead, was take a version of the ship from slightly earlier in its timeline, duplicated it, and plopped it back down, fiddling with the memories of everyone involved so they wouldn’t try recreating the experiment. This is what we’re looking at.” The Time Lord pointed at the screen. “The original <em>Eldridge</em>…”</p><p>“And it’s responsible for bringing the Vashta Nerada and that shark thing through.” El pieced together.</p><p>“Exactly.” The Doctor pointed. “Meaning we have to figure out a way to undo it.”</p><p>A loud pressure seal hissed overhead, mechanical clamps ringing throughout the command center.</p><p>The Doctor and Dana looked at each other, knowing exactly who was responsible.</p><p>“He’s going ahead with it… Those aren’t life pods your friends will be getting into, they’re coffins.” He turned to El. “Come on,” He led her down the steps, towards the access door to the back. “We have to stop this.”</p><p>The door slid open, and the Doctor stopped, as Oswald stood on the other side, holding a harpoon gun.</p><p>“…Ah.” The Time Lord blinked.</p><p>------------</p><p>“I don’t like this, Doctor.” Oswald apologized to the Time Lord tied to the railing in the command centre. “But getting these people, getting Dana, to safety. That is my top priority. Which means I can’t have you interfere.”</p><p>“Oswald,” Dana pleaded, “He says the life pods aren’t safe, you have to listen to him!”</p><p>“I’ve been careful, Dana,” Oswald replied. “Believe me. This way, at least we have a chance.”</p><p>“He’s right, Dana.” The Doctor softly spoke up, nodding. “It’s a chance.”</p><p>El looked to her side, to the Time Lord. “Dad?”</p><p>“Go with him.” The Doctor told Dana. “He wants to keep you safe.”</p><p>Dana nodded slightly, as she turned around, Oswald leading the way.</p><p>“I’ll be back to get you, Doctor.” The man informed the Time Lord, leading Dana out of the command centre.</p><p>El looked to the Doctor inquisitively. “Okay, talk. You told me not to hurt him, you have a plan?”</p><p>“Course I have a plan.” The Doctor replied. “I needed him to get out of here as fast as possible so I could do this.” He suddenly held up his hands, completely free of the bindings.</p><p>“How-?” El asked.</p><p>“Taught Houdini that one.” The Time Lord boasted, as he helped El free herself. “Come on, we need to get to the TARDIS, quickly.”</p><p>“The TARDIS?” El repeated. “You know there’s water in the way, right?”</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor held up a finger, flashing a knowing smile, as he walked over to Jones’s terminal in the command center. “Jones. Could you bring up a map of the service tunnels, please?”</p><p>The computer beeped, as a wireframe layout appeared on the nearby screen. “Watertight service trenches run beneath Poseidon.” Jones explained, sections of the tunnel network lighting up in the path the Doctor and El needed to take. “Although seabed tunnels connecting with your craft’s sealed location have been destroyed, access is achievable.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to El, smiling. “Duct-crawling… my favorite pastime.”</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor pushed up the access hatch, popping his head out, looking around. His eyes fell on the blue box, windows and signage glowing a cool white, and he smiled.</p><p>“Well done, Jones.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS materialized, slightly clouded by murky water, engines muffled by the countless tons of liquid in the way. The ship fully solidified, and the moment it did, all the water inside the USS Eldridge was effortlessly displaced.</p><p>The door swung open, the Doctor stepping out onto the metal deck first, “Smells a bit stale. Tastes of engine oil and halibut, but it’ll do. Come along, El.”</p><p>The girl frowned as she stepped out. “It’s sunk… so why is there air in here?”</p><p>“Function of the TARDIS.” The Doctor replied. “Right, now, the Eldridge’s Time Rotor must still be partially active. Well, they didn’t call it that, but if it talks like a duck and walks like a duck.” He shrugged. “In any case, deactivating it should cause the Zaralok and the Vashta Nerada to snap back to wherever they came from.” He motioned for the girl to follow as he began to walk.</p><p>Something screeched, and El looked around fearfully. “What was that?”</p><p>“Speaking of the Zaralok…” The Doctor jerked his thumb to a porthole. “Don’t worry, he can’t see us. Porthole’s too small. He probably just doesn’t want to head back home. Not much in Earth’s oceans bigger than him. Top of the food chain here.”</p><p>“But, I don’t get it.” El said. “How is turning off the Time Rotor in here going to send them all back?”</p><p>“Well, I’m willing to bet that the Vashta Nerada and the Zaralok didn’t go below deck.” The Doctor replied. “See, the Time Lords knew what they were doing when they were creating the first TARDISes, but this lot here had no idea what they were doing. Op, hold on.” The Doctor hefted El up, running in time with flashing lights. Safely on the other side, he let her down. “Get that door, if you could?”</p><p>The girl nodded, and lifted up the plate metal door, allowing them to continue.</p><p>“Hold on.” The Doctor stopped her once they were on the other side. “Hear that?” He asked, heavy footfalls in the distance.</p><p>They looked, watching, as two skeletons wearing WWII-era diving suits limped around the room aimlessly, searching for food that hadn’t been there for a long time.</p><p>“Fortunately enough, this is the bilge pump room…” The Doctor smiled, turning to El. “Think you can push them in there?”</p><p>The girl nodded, and her hand shot out, the two diving suits being propelled through the air, into the room. Using her powers to hit the button by the side, the doors came down to seal the bilge pump, as water filled it, before the hatch on the bottom opened, draining the water inside, taking the suits with it.</p><p>“Nice work.” The Doctor complimented. “Now, where was I…? Ah. See, the particular type of physics that this sort of technology works with is all sorts of wonky. In a properly constructed capsule, it wouldn’t be a problem… but again, the people in charge of the experiment had no idea what would happen.”</p><p>“So, what did happen?” El asked. “And how does that explain how we send it back?”</p><p>“Haven’t you noticed, yet?” The Doctor replied. “Aside from those two… we haven’t come across any bodies yet.”</p><p>El looked around. The Doctor was right, the ship was empty.</p><p>“It’s a classic case of a temporal switch around caused by an improperly-mounted Time Rotor still being active.” The Doctor shook his head. “To put it in the simplest terms I can, imagine that the Zaralok and the Vashta Nerada are surrounded in energy, and the people from here on the Eldridge are surrounded in energy too. “ He began, climbing up a ladder. “They both have different kinds, however, unique to each world they come from, and that energy wants to go back to its proper place. The Time Rotor, which is still somewhat active, is currently interfering with that energy from going back, so all we have to do is shut it off, and everything snaps back into place. Understand?”</p><p>“Yes.” El nodded.</p><p>“Good, cause it’s absolutely nothing like that.” The Doctor said. “But I don’t have the time to talk to you about string theory and its ramifications. Ah,” He looked around upon reaching the top of the ladder, “Now we’re getting somewhere.”</p><p>“Where are we?” El asked, looking around.</p><p>“The engine room, I think, and if you look up there…” The Doctor pointed to a green box made out of corrugated steel, faintly emitting a scraping noise not dissimilar to the TARDIS’s engines.</p><p>“The Time Rotor.”</p><p>“Humans. You try to make something invisible and you make one of the most powerful time traveling devices in the known universe.” The Doctor shook his head. “Hm… here, climb up.”</p><p>“Why?” El questioned, as she nevertheless climbed on the Doctor’s back once more.</p><p>“Because I hear electricity crackling, I have rubber soles, and you don’t.”</p><p>El frowned. “Rubber soles…”</p><p>“Yep. Now, what was I talking about…? Oh, right.” The Doctor got back on track as he carried her up the stairs. “Then again… you lot were trying to make a substance to make people immortal and wound up with gunpowder so I shouldn’t be surprised at this point. Steam valve.” He pointed to it and the steam leaking out of the pipe ahead. “Mind getting that?”</p><p>The girl nodded, and without lifting her hand, began to turn the wheel as she and the Doctor continued through the now clear air, up the steps. Steam hissed, stopping and starting haphazardly, the Doctor waiting for the safe points. Eventually, they started approaching the top, arcs of green electricity coming from the Time Rotor into the staircase.</p><p>“Ah, see?” The Doctor pointed out as they cleared the top.</p><p>El looked to her left and gulped. “Dad… The Zaralok’s back.”</p><p>“Oh for crying out loud, can’t I have a peaceful piggyback ride with my daughter for once!?” The Time Lord grumbled, running across the deck to the control system for the Eldridge’s Time Rotor.</p><p>Grabbing and pulling down the lever on the far left, El leaned over and pulled down the middle, before she pulled the final one down with her mind.</p><p>The Zaralok, about to crash into the window, suddenly vanished in a flash of light, as that same flash took over the inside of the Eldridge.</p><p>The bodies of the human crew, long, long dead, were now back in their proper places.</p><p>The Philadelphia Experiment could finally rest.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor stood, hands clapped satisfactorily behind his back, stood in Poseidon’s command centre, as he watched the life pods shoot up through the water, bubbles trailing behind them, as they approached the surface.</p><p>“Look at them go…” The Time Lord smiled. “I daresay daylight never looked so good.”</p><p>El nodded in agreement, looking to Dana and Oswald. “What about you two?”</p><p>“We’ll take the next pod.” Dana answered. “Oswald is responding well to your meds, but the pods’ SOS beacons will bring a medical ship. We need to get everybody checked out.”</p><p>“Well, in any event, you shouldn’t have to worry about the Vortron radiation anymore.” The Doctor informed. “Shutting down the Time Rotor on board the Eldridge stopped the dimensional intersection causing it.”</p><p>“I’m… sorry, Doctor.” Oswald apologized. “I acted like an idiot. The moment you shut that thing down, we saw the Vashta Nerada vanish out of the life pods. You saved our skins. Really.”</p><p>“Well, I couldn’t just leave you sitting in the dark, could I?” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“I do have a question, though…” Oswald began. “What will happen to the Eldridge now?”</p><p>“I’ve already taken to removing the Time Rotor myself.” The Doctor replied. “The wreckage itself, well… I’ll leave that to you lot.”</p><p>“I see.” Oswald nodded. “Doctor… whoever you are, wherever you come from… thank you. We owe you everything. In fact… we’ve just had our harvest. We would be honored if you could join us for Christmas dinner.”</p><p>“Mmm…” El’s stomach growled. “Hungry. What are we having?”</p><p>“Oswald’s prize crop.” Dana answered.</p><p>“Oh, marvelous!” The Doctor clapped. “What’s that then?”</p><p>“Sea pumpkins.” Oswald answered.</p><p>“Sea… pumpkins?” El repeated.</p><p>“You’ll love them.” Oswald promised, turning to walk down the steps as El and the Doctor looked at each other.</p><p>The two time travelers made out of there faster than even the TARDIS could carry them.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0053"><h2>53. A Troubled Man</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So, with this, we're back on track with Series 5. I'm not going to do the Lodger (because discounting the fact that Gareth Roberts is... a piece of work) I just don't like it. It's not funny, and part of what I felt made the original comic story work so well was the fact that it was Mickey and the Tenth Doctor, two characters we'd gotten to know fairly well whose relationship already had a fair bit of conflict because both of them were vying for Rose. So, What I'm going to do instead when that one comes around is, well, you'll see.</p><p>Now, if you're someone who clicked on this because you saw the 'Don't have to watch Doctor Who' part of the summary, hello! Disregard everything I just said. And I hope you're finding the story easy enough to follow along. Whenever something from an older era of the show is introduced I try to explain it the best I can, so I hope I'm doing well.</p><p>I don't usually write notes like these before the chapters so... i guess that's it? Happy reading.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“So this is one of the last paintings Van Gogh ever painted.” The curator of the Musée d’Orsay’s Van Gogh exhibit, Doctor Henry Black, exposited, standing in front of Vincent Van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Crows. “Those final months of his life were probably the most astonishing artistic outpouring in history. It was like… Shakespeare, knocking off Othello, Macbeth, and King Lear all in the span of the summer hols.”</p><p>Behind the man, and the group he was currently expositing to, the Doctor and El walked, the girl’s hand in the Time Lord’s, as she carried a pamphlet, looking around at the art.</p><p>“And especially astonishing because Van Gogh did it with no hope of praise or reward…”</p><p>El looked around curiously. “Drawings…”</p><p>“Ah, not just drawings, paintings.” The Doctor replied, gesturing around. “The paintings of Vincent Van Gogh. That’s him over there.” He pointed to the self portrait hanging on one of the walls.</p><p>El tilted her head. She didn’t think adults drew… In fact, art like the stuff she was surrounded by now was… like nothing she’d ever seen. Past the simple stick figures and lines she had drawn once in the lab, more… realistic, but with an odd sort of… discordance about them. Not an ugly sort of discordance, but something… haphazard, coming together to create something beautiful.</p><p>The girl looked up to the Time Lord. “Why’d you bring me here?”</p><p>“Well, it’s part of your history.” The Doctor replied. “Human history. Well, actually, we’ve got normal history and science stuff covered in our travels, I’m teaching you English and how to use your powers on board the TARDIS, so I thought it’d be a good idea to round out your education with art and music. After we’re done here, we’re going to go to the Proms. I was at the very first Proms, actually, I played the tuba…”</p><p>“Each of these pictures now is worth tens of millions of pounds,” Dr. Black continued, “Yet in his lifetime he was a commercial disaster. He only ever sold one painting, and that to a sister of a friend. We have here possibly the greatest artist of all time, but when he died, you could’ve sold his entire body of work, and only had enough money to buy a sofa… and a couple of chairs.” He pointed to another place. “If you’ll follow me now…” He led his tour group to the other side of the room.</p><p>“It’s the Doctor!” A child across the room suddenly recognized, the Time Lord whipping around to look, as El curiously examined the paintings.</p><p>“Oh.” The Doctor chuckled to himself, at the two children looking at Portrait of Doctor Gachet.</p><p>El wandered curiously over to one of the paintings, the only one without people standing directly in front of it, as the Doctor moved to rejoin her.</p><p>“Look at that…” The Time Lord gestured, close enough to the painting to touch it. “It’s like you can see him painting it right in front of you. Carving the colors into shapes…” The Doctor examined every square centimeter of the canvas, his eyes stopping upon reaching one of the church’s windows. “Wait a minute…”</p><p>“What?” El asked.</p><p>“Look.” The Doctor pointed to the window in question, making sure to not actually touch the painting. “Something very not good indeed.” He rubbed the back of his head. “Remember rule one of monster hunting?”</p><p>The girl nodded. “Look for the thing that doesn’t belong.”</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor agreed. “So, what doesn’t belong in this picture?”</p><p>The girl’s eyes narrowed as she followed the Doctor’s hand. There, in the window of the church, was a bird-like head with its enormous beak parted in a scream.</p><p>El looked around at the other paintings. Everything else seemed perfectly ordinary, no monsters. “Face.” She pointed out.</p><p>“Right… and not a nice face at all.” The Doctor swallowed.</p><p>El looked to him, “How can you know?”</p><p>“I’ve seen evil.” The Doctor replied. “And that… is an evil face.”</p><p>The Time Lord spun on his heel, walking over to the tour group. “Excuse me.” He apologized, grabbing Dr. Black’s attention. “Terribly, terribly sorry for interrupting, but my little girl was curious and we can’t seem to find it anywhere; When was that one painted?”</p><p>“Well,” Black blinked. “What an interesting question. Most people-“</p><p>“Terribly sorry again, but she has something she wants to do after this, and you know how kids are, bouncing all over the place.” The Doctor cut him off. “Just tell me exactly as you can, without a big speech, you know how kids can get when they’re impatient.”</p><p>“Yes, I understand…” Black thought about it for a moment. “Some time in between June 1<sup>st</sup> and June 3<sup>rd</sup>, 1890. Only about a month before he… killed himself.”</p><p>“Thank you, sir.” The Doctor nodded gratefully. “Very helpful indeed… Nice bow tie.” He giggled, turning to El. “Bow ties are cool.”</p><p>“Yes, yours is very…” Black pointed.</p><p>“Oh, thank you.” He straightened the accessory. “Keep telling them stuff, thanks again!” The Doctor offered Black, before grabbing El’s hand, pulling her along.</p><p>“But, the pictures…” El looked around.</p><p>“Don’t worry, we can always come back.” The Doctor replied. “But this is a matter of life and death. We need to talk to Vincent Van Gogh.”</p><p>----------</p><p>The wheezing scraping noise of the TARDIS broke the silence of a darkened alleyway, sending a cat scurrying away in fear as the ship solidified.</p><p>“Right, so, here’s the plan:” The Doctor began, he and El hopping out, looking in both directions, before walking to the right. “We find Vincent, he leads us straight to the church, and we can deal with the nasty fiend there.”</p><p>“Sounds easy.” El commented.</p><p>“Well, no.” The Doctor replied. “Vincent Van Gogh was a very complex, very… disturbed man. I don’t suspect it’ll be easy when it comes to him. Right, he’ll probably be in the local café, a sort of orangey place with tables outside.”</p><p>El looked down to the book she’d picked up from the museum and flipped through it. “Like this?”</p><p>The Doctor peered over her shoulder. “Yep, that’s it.”</p><p>El pointed down the way, to an outer patio just like the one in the painting.</p><p>“Oh, cleverly spotted.” The Doctor complimented, beginning the approach. “Good evening,” He said to the waiter standing outside. “Does the name Vincent Van Gogh ring a bell?”</p><p>The man scowled, shaking his head. “Oh, don’t mention that name to me.” He growled, before going into the café.</p><p>“Excuse me…” The Doctor apologized, blinking, before he turned to one of the waitresses cleaning a table. “Do you know Vincent Van Gogh?”</p><p>The woman huffed. “Unfortunately.”</p><p>“Unfortunately?” El repeated. She heard Dr. Black say the man wasn’t successful in life, but this active dislike…</p><p>“He’s drunk, he’s mad, and he never pays his bills.” The woman elaborated.</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “Good painter though, eh?”</p><p>The waitress and one of her colleagues broke into uproarious laughter.</p><p>The Doctor sighed with a scowl, sitting down, motioning El to follow.</p><p>“Come on, come on!” A man inside the café begged as he was thrown out. “One painting for one drink! That’s not a bad deal!”</p><p>The Doctor turned to El with a giddy smile, knowing exactly who the voice’s owner was.</p><p>“It wouldn’t be a bad deal,” The waiter retorted, pushing a redheaded man with a scraggly beard out, holding the painting. “If this painting were any good! I can’t hang that up on my walls, it’d scare the customers half to death! It’s bad enough having you here in person, the last thing we need is this ugly thing looming over the place!” He shoved the painting to the man’s chest. “You pay money, or you get out!”</p><p>The Doctor grinned at El, shaking his head, before he looked in that direction. “I’ll pay, if you like.”</p><p>The waiter turned to the Doctor incredulously, Vincent Van Gogh turning around to stare in disbelief as well. “What?”</p><p>“I’ll pay for the drink,” The Doctor shrugged. “Or, I’ll pay for the painting, and he can use the money to pay for his drink.”</p><p>Van Gogh looked at the Time Lord with narrowed eyes. “Who exactly are you?”</p><p>“Well, I’m new in town.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Well, in that case, you don’t know three things.” Vincent began.</p><p>“Go on.” The Doctor prompted.</p><p>“One, I pay for my own drinks.”</p><p>“Ha!” The waiter scoffed.</p><p>“Two, no one ever buys any of my paintings or they would be laughed out of town, so if you want to <em>stay </em>in town, I suggest you keep your money to yourself. And three, you should keep your nose out of other people’s business.” Vincent turned to the waiter. “Come on, just one more drink, I’ll pay tomorrow!”</p><p>“No.” The waiter shot down.</p><p>“Or, on the slightly more compassionate hand, yes.” Vincent replied.</p><p>“Or, on the other hand, to protect my business from madmen, no!”</p><p>“Or-“</p><p>“Shut up.” El commanded, “Both of you.” She reached into the Doctor’s pocket against the Time Lord’s squirming, pulling out a wallet, before slamming a stack of francs down on the table. “You,” She looked at the waiter. “Bring me…” She looked to the Doctor.</p><p>“Wine.” The Doctor finished, a bit put off.</p><p>“Wine.” El said. “I’ll share it with who I want.”</p><p>“…very well.” The waiter took the stack of money, going inside to procure the bottle.</p><p>“I don’t-“ Vincent began.</p><p>“You,” El stared at him, “Sit.”</p><p>The artist immediately did as he was told.</p><p>“Blimey, El.” The Doctor looked to her. “Where in blazes did you learn to do that?”</p><p>“You’re the oncoming storm.” El replied. “I am the… oncoming… cloudy… day?”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Who are you two?” Vincent asked as he sat down his glass, looking between the two time travelers.</p><p>“Well, I’m the Doctor-“ The Time Lord held his hand out.</p><p>“Oh,” Vincent pulled back, looking disgusted. “I knew it.”</p><p>The Doctor’s hand dropped. “Sorry?”</p><p>“My brother’s always sending doctors.” Vincent shook his head, downing another glass. “But you won’t be able to help.”</p><p>“Not that kind of Doctor.” The Time Lord replied, “But look at that!” The Doctor pointed to the self-portrait. “El, that’s brilliant, don’t you think?”</p><p>The girl tilted her head. “Pretty.”</p><p>“Ha.” Vincent let out a laugh, as he looked at the canvas. “You need to get your eyes checked, child. I know it’s horrible. …but it’s the best I could do.” He shook his head and dropped the painting, turning back to his glass.</p><p>“You tried.” El said. “Trying’s what matters…” At least, that was what she told herself when she couldn’t do something, either with her powers or otherwise. She tilted her head. “Your hair’s red.” She noted. She and the Doctor had been to a lot of places, but she hadn’t seen someone with red hair before.</p><p>“Yes, it used to be more red, but…” Vincent gestured. “Age does that. Hm.” He threw back the glass. “Not met many children willing to speak their mind to strangers.”</p><p>“She’s not a normal child.” The Doctor smiled proudly. “So, Vincent, think about painting any churches recently? Any church-y plans? Aren’t churches, chapels, religious-y stuff like that, something you’d like to get into very soon?”</p><p>“Well…” Vincent considered, running a finger along the rim of his wine glass. “There was a church I planned on painting. When the weather is right.”</p><p>“Brilliant,” The Doctor threw an arm around El, looking at her. “That’s brilliant, don’t you think that’s brilliant?”</p><p>Someone screamed, an older woman running into the café. “Help me!” She hysterically cried.</p><p>“That, on the other hand,” The Doctor pointed, shooting to his feet. “Not so brilliant. Come along, El!” He took the girl’s hand, as Vincent quickly finished the rest of his mind, running to join.</p><p>The trio sprinted out of the café, down the street towards the alley, towards the crowd.</p><p>“She’s been ripped to shreds!” A man hollered, standing over a corpse in the alley.</p><p>“Move, move, I’m a Doctor!” The Time Lord shouted, running over.</p><p>El covered her mouth, looking away, as it looked like the woman had been ripped open, exposing her insides to the air.</p><p>“Move away, you vultures!” A woman screeched. “That’s my daughter!” The woman fell to her knees by the corpse. “Giselle… Get away from her!” She suddenly bellowed, grabbing a stone. “Get that madman out of here!” She snarled, hurling the stone at Vincent, as the crowd followed suit.</p><p>It was all El could do not to retaliate directly, but she did use her powers to send the stones off-course just slightly, preventing the three of them from getting hit, while some of the throwers got hit from their own crossfire.</p><p>The Doctor huffed, hunching over, looking to Vincent. “You all right?”</p><p>“Yes,” The Dutch painter sighed. “I’m used to it.”</p><p>“Has anything like this murder happened here before?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“Only a week ago.” Vincent replied. “It’s a terrible time.”</p><p>“As I thought, as I thought.” The Doctor replied. “Come on, let’s get you home.”</p><p>“Where are you staying tonight?” Vincent inquired.</p><p>“Oh!” The Doctor patted the man on his shoulder. “Thank you, you’re too kind!”</p><p>El chuckled as she followed the Doctor.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dark night. Very starry.” The Doctor remarked as Vincent led the two to his residence.</p><p>“It’s not much.” Vincent stated as he led them up to the building. “But you should be okay for <em>one </em>night. Just one.”</p><p><em>‘We’re going to stay with him?’ </em>El sent to the Doctor.</p><p>
  <em>‘Just until he paints that church.’</em>
</p><p>“Watch out.” Vincent pointed to a hanging canvas as he opened the front door. “That one’s wet.”</p><p>El looked to it curiously, the painting depicting Vincent’s bedroom. “Hm.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Sorry about all the clutter.” Vincent apologized, lighting a lamp, as El and the Doctor looked curiously around the room.</p><p>“Some clutter.” The Doctor sarcastically remarked in response.</p><p>“Well, I’ve come to accept the only one who’s going to love my paintings is me.” Vincent replied. “Coffee?”</p><p>“Not for me, thanks.” The Doctor replied, poking around the corner to the kitchen. The Time Lord stiffened, upon seeing the coffee pot on the canvas. “You know, you really should be careful with these. They’re…” He watched, mortified, as Vincent wiped a ring of liquid off the surface. “Precious.”</p><p>“Precious to me, maybe.” Vincent huffed. “But not to anyone else. I’ve come to accept that.”</p><p>“They’re pretty.” El honestly stated, poking one.</p><p>“Your kindness is most welcome.” Vincent replied. “But you don’t need to lie.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head. “Right, so, church then. Is it near here?”</p><p>Vincent looked to the Doctor curiously. “What is it with you and the church?”</p><p>“Oh, casual interest.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>Vincent snorted as he grabbed two pieces of firewood, throwing them onto a fire. “Far from casual. Seems you never talk about anything else.”</p><p>“Well, if you <em>must </em>know,” The Doctor replied, “I get these hyper fixations.”</p><p>Vincent looked up. “What?”</p><p>“I tend to throw all my focus to one subject.” The Doctor explained.</p><p>“That doesn’t sound like a real thing.” Vincent shook his head.</p><p>“He’s telling the truth.” El spoke up. “Last week he only read and talked about Sherlock Holmes, now it’s churches.”</p><p>“Ah…” Vincent blinked. “He is a weird one isn’t he?”</p><p>“Yes, well, enough about me.” The Doctor patted Vincent on the back. “What about you? What takes your fancy?”</p><p>“Well, look around.” Vincent gestured. “Art. It seems to me, there’s so much more to the world than the average eye is allowed to see. I believe, if you look hard, there are more wonders in this universe… than you could have ever have dreamed of.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled knowingly, looking to El. “You don’t have to tell us.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0054"><h2>54. The Invisible Menace</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“It’s color!” Vincent emphasized. Someone else might say he was raving, but it was clear he was just very, very passionate about what he did… Just another victim of the fallacy ‘follow your passion and success will come.’ It was never as easy as that.</p><p>Still, it didn’t mean you should stop trying.</p><p>“Color holds the key!” Vincent continued, holding a hand to his ear. “I can hear the colors. Listen to them.” He instructed, looking around the room. “Every time I step outside I feel as though nature is shouting to me. ‘Come on. Come and get me! Come on!’”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, leaning back slightly as Vincent got in his face. “…maybe that’s enough coffee for now. Let’s get you a cup of chamomile or something? El?” He looked over, searching. “Where’s El?”</p><p>A high-pitched scream came from outside, and the Doctor instantly scrambled to his feet, sprinting out the door.</p><p>“El! El!” The Doctor shouted, running over to the girl sitting on the ground, as Vincent followed. “El, what happened!?”</p><p>“Fine, I’m fine…” The girl breathed. “I was looking at some of the paintings and something hit me. I didn’t see it.”</p><p>“It’s okay, it’s gone now, we’re here.” The Doctor told her.</p><p>“Augh!” Vincent called out, turning to look at something. “No!”</p><p>“Vincent, take it easy…” The Doctor tried to calm him. “Take it easy…”</p><p>“Dad, what’s happening?” El asked, as Vincent scrambled around, going for a wooden pitchfork.</p><p>“I think he’s having an episode!” The Doctor replied. “Common for people with conditions like his! We just have to help him through it!”</p><p>Vincent took aim, eyes narrowing, as he charged forward.</p><p>“Oh, dear.” The Doctor stepped out of the way, as Vincent shot past. Thing is, the Doctor nor El had apparently been his target, as he motioned for them to flee.</p><p>“Run!” Vincent ordered them. “Run!”</p><p>“Yeah, not a bad idea…” The Doctor stepped back. “El get away, I’ll try to calm him down.”</p><p>Vincent grunted, kicking over a barrel, as he spun about.</p><p>“Easy, Vincent, easy…” The Doctor tried, as Vincent whipped around to face him. “Don’t worry, it’s just me. The Doctor.” He waved his hands back and forth. “There’s no one else here, so, could you please-“</p><p>The Doctor got the wind knocked out of him as he was suddenly sent flying through the air.</p><p>El yelped, as an invisible set of claws ripped through the painting of the canvas near her. “I don’t see it! Why can’t I see it!?”</p><p>The Doctor shot to his feet, looking around. He couldn’t see it either, whatever it was… it was good enough to hide from Time Lord senses as well. He grabbed a long staff, running to Vincent’s side.</p><p>“You can see it too!?” Vincent turned to the Time Lord.</p><p>“Yes… ish!” The Doctor replied, running just a few feet away, wildly swinging the staff around haphazardly. “Well, no!” The Time Lord stopped. “Not really. Augh!” He was sent flying back again, landing on a table across the yard.</p><p>“You couldn’t see him!” Vincent realized.</p><p>“No, no!” The Doctor shot back to his feet, vigorously swinging the staff with all his might.</p><p>As the Doctor stood off to the side, Vincent ran up, jamming the pitchfork into thin air, the sound of tearing flesh and alien howling coming from the empty air. He pulled back, and galloping echoed, as something ran off into the distance.</p><p>“Dad.” El called over to the Doctor, the Time Lord still swinging the stick around. “Dad… DAD!”</p><p>“What!?” The Doctor whipped about.</p><p>“It’s gone.”</p><p>“Right, well, okay then.” The Doctor dropped the staff, breathing heavily.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor wiped his face as they went back into Vincent’s house. “So, he’s invisible. What did he look like?”</p><p>“I’ll show you.” Vincent replied, grabbing one of his paintings and covering it over with a thin layer of white paint.</p><p>“Oh, no, no, no!” The Doctor shot over, Vincent looking to the Time Lord inquisitively. “Sorry, it was just… that was a good one.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor held the finished product out in front of him, frowning.</p><p>“Do you recognize it?” El inquired, looking to the Time Lord.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor replied, frowning. “…but I know of something that just might.”</p><p>Vincent looked up from where he was seated. “What?”</p><p>“Don’t worry, we’ll be back in a jiffy.” The Doctor pointed. “Come along, El.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor wished he could say he found it immediately. He didn’t. It took him searching almost all night through the TARDIS storerooms, coming up with nothing each time, before he found the right trunk tucked right in the lowest corridor of the console room, the one he never used.</p><p>The TARDIS was having a laugh at him.</p><p>“Come on, come on…” The Doctor bemoaned as he ruffled through the trunk. “Aha!” He grabbed a device that looked to be nothing more than a mirror on an arm attached to a bit of electronics from it. “I can’t believe I ever thought you a useful gadget!” He excitedly ran back up to the console.</p><p>“What is it?” El inquired, the girl having gotten a good night’s rest in the interim, as the Doctor sat the device on the console, plugging a cord from the diagnostics panel into a port on the device.</p><p>“Portable lifeform scanner that I got from my godmother!” The Doctor answered. “Dull woman, two heads, really bad breath. Right, calibration, sit there.” He pointed the mirror at El, Gallifreyan text flashing across the screen.</p><p>The Doctor hit a button, and something began to print out from the typewriter on the communications panel. It was a little length of paper, showing information on the scanner. Included on it was a picture of El, and some text.</p><p>
  <em>‘NAME: Jane Ives. SPECIES: Human. PLANET OF ORIGIN: Earth.’</em>
</p><p>The Doctor nodded and then tested it on himself to make sure it was working correctly. He hit the spacebar on the typewriter and began to print information about him.</p><p><em>‘NAME: The Doctor. SPECIES: Gallifreyan. PLANET OF ORIGIN: Gallifrey.’ </em>It also began to print pictures of all his faces, going back to the first, but he stopped it before it could get past the second. It’d blast through the entire roll of paper at that rate.</p><p>“Good, now you’re working…” The Doctor held up the portrait of the creature to the scanner. “See what you can get from this.”</p><p>The device dinged, an image of a parakeet flashing across the reflective surface. “No, I know those, and you can see those plain as day.”</p><p>The device beeped in response to the Doctor’s badgering, before flashing an image of a polar bear.</p><p>“No! Dead wrong.” The Doctor shook his head. “This is the problem with impressionists, not accurate enough. This wouldn’t happen with one of those ‘proper’ painters like Gainsborough.” His eyes flickered over to El. “Don’t tell Vincent I said that.”</p><p>“What do we do?” The girl asked.</p><p>“We’ll just have to get him to draw something better.” The Doctor answered, throwing the canvas over his head.</p><p>--------</p><p>The door shut behind the Doctor and El, the Time Lord looking down to fiddle with the dials on the scanner, before it dinged.</p><p>“Ah, that’s better, old girl.” The Doctor adjusted the panel. “Little delay, but you always work it out in the end. Good, let’s find out who this is, then.” The Doctor looked at the flashing text. “Oh, there you are, you poor thing. You brutal, murderous… abandoned thing.”</p><p>“What is it?” El asked, as the Doctor fiddled with the scanner.</p><p>“It’s a-“ The Doctor glanced at the panel. “El… when I say run…” He quietly began. “RUN!” He grabbed her hand, pulling her along as he sprinted down the alley for dear life.</p><p>Knocking bits of debris and junk into the path, the Doctor and El ran under an arch, a brick being knocked loose, the creature screeching in pain as it hit the top of the arch.</p><p>They turned the corner, the creature howling as it ran off into the distance.</p><p>The Doctor breathed, flopping back against the wall. That was too close.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Wakey wakey!” The Doctor announced as loudly as he could, throwing the doors to Vincent’s bedroom open. “Rise and shine! Breakfast is served in the courtyard,” The Doctor said, opening some windows, the painter covering his eyes in displeasure. “Whoa, what a morning.” He remarked as a rooster crowed, before turning around, clapping his hands. “Come on, there’s something I need to show you!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“That’s him!” Vincent gasped, looking at a picture printed out from the TARDIS. “And the eyes… without mercy.”</p><p>“That is a creature called the Krafayis.” The Doctor informed Van Gogh, the painter looking up in response. “They travel through space in great packs, descending on world after world in their hunts, before going onto the next. Sometimes, though, one of them gets left behind. The runt, the weakling, and because they are that brutal, they don’t ever come back. So, dotted around the universe are individual Krafayis killing and eating until they die of old age… or are killed by the natives, which they usually aren’t because they can’t be seen by any living thing.”</p><p>“But I can.” Vincent realized, looking back down at the paper.</p><p>“Yes, and that means, Vincent, we are in a unique position to end this reign of terror before it can go any further.” The Doctor pointed. “So,” The Time Lord sat down in a chair, throwing a leg over the other, “Feel like painting that church today?”</p><p>“What about the monster?” Vincent stammered.</p><p>“If you paint it… he will come.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“…Okay.” Vincent nodded, shooting to his feet. “I’ll grab my things.”</p><p>“In your own time.” The Doctor replied. “And don’t worry, I promise you, we’ll be out of your hair by this time tomorrow.”</p><p>Vincent stopped in the door, looking between the Doctor and El, before he swallowed, exiting the room.</p><p>The moment Vincent stepped out the Doctor shook his head. “This is risky.”</p><p>“More risky than normal?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor shot to his feet, moving towards the door as well. “Think about it. This is Van Gogh’s finest year of painting. If we’re not careful, the net result of our pleasant little trip will be the brutal murder of one of the greatest artists who ever lived and half the paintings inside the Musée d’Orsay vanishing like they were never even there.” He moved to sit down next to El, the girl’s curls bouncing as he did so. “And it’ll be our fault.”</p><p>“…Won’t let that happen.” El resolved, leaning into the Doctor.</p><p>“I hope not.” The Doctor breathed. “My conscience wouldn’t be able to take it.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor walked up to the door of Vincent’s bedroom. The man had said he would be getting his things, but that had been almost an hour ago.</p><p>“Vincent?” The Time Lord knocked. “Vincent?” He repeated, both sets of knuckles rapping against the door. He quickly checked his watch, before letting himself in.</p><p>Vincent was on his bed, face down. And though he was trying his best to muffle the sound, it was plain as day he was sobbing uncontrollably.</p><p>“Vincent…?” The Doctor slowly entered. “Can I help?”</p><p>Vincent huffed. “It’s so clear you cannot help. And when you leave… and everyone always leaves… I will be left once more with an empty heart, and no hope.”</p><p>The Doctor sat down on the chair nearby. The man was going through it… grieving the departure of the first friends he had in a long while, even though they hadn’t gone yet. But they will.</p><p>“My experience is that,” The Doctor replied, as Vincent turned over to face him, “There is, surprisingly… <em>always </em>hope.”</p><p>“Then your experience is incomplete!” The artist barked back. “I know how it will end…” A tear fell onto his pillow. “And it will not end well.”</p><p>The Doctor rubbed his face, for the first time in a long while totally clueless as to what he should do. “Come on.” He tapped Vincent’s leg. “Come on, let’s go outside, come on-“</p><p>“Out!” Vincent hollered, hysterically pointing to the door. “You get out!” The Time Lord began inching back towards the door. “What are you doing here? What are you doing here!?”</p><p>The Doctor swallowed. “Very well… I’ll leave. I’ll leave.”</p><p>Vincent curled into a ball, sobbing hysterically, as the Doctor stepped out, sighing.</p><p>“Dad…” El looked to the Doctor once he had emerged. “What’s wrong with him?”</p><p>“I told you…” The Doctor regretfully replied. “He’s a… delicate man.”</p><p>“Why?” El looked to the room.</p><p>The Doctor shrugged sadly and shook his head. “There’s no why… some people just have the misfortune of being born that way. Vincent is, unfortunately, one of a million just like him…”</p><p>“Is there…” El looked to the door. “Can we help?”</p><p>“I’m afraid not.” The Doctor frowned. “It’s not something we can fix with a sonic screwdriver or a quick pop into the TARDIS… He needs medical help. Help from actual doctors, and unfortunately… even that may not be enough. Why, just next month, he… he’ll take his own life.”</p><p>“Don’t… Don’t say that.” El requested, shaking his head.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, tapping Starry Night hanging on the wall. “We’re going to have to do this ourselves. Go to that church and hope the Krafayis still turns up.”</p><p>“But…” El looked to the Time Lord. “How are we going to see it?”</p><p>“I’ll think of something.” The Doctor replied, bending over to look through some art supplies.</p><p>A shadow fell on the wall, and El turned to look first, followed by the Doctor.</p><p>“I’m ready.” Vincent stated. “Let’s go.” He grabbed some brushes out of one of his pots.</p><p>------------</p><p>“…I’m sorry you’re sad.” El sympathized, the three of them walking side-by-side down the dirt path to the church.</p><p>“Ah, but I’m not.” Vincent replied. “These moods torment me for weeks, months, but I’m fine now.” He looked to them. “If the two of you can soldier on, so can I.”</p><p>El frowned. “Soldier on?”</p><p>“Aye.” Van Gogh confirmed. “I see it in your eyes. Both of yours… The two of you have experienced things. Horrible things.”</p><p>“How… do you know?” El asked.</p><p>Vincent just smiled sadly. “When one experiences pain… you learn to recognize it in others. Like you, Doctor,” He turned to the Time Lord, “You’re grieving for something, I think.”</p><p>“…yeah.” The Time Lord confirmed. “Anyway, when the creature comes back, we need to have a plan.”</p><p>“Then we shall fight it!” Vincent determinedly stated.</p><p>“Well, yes, tick.” The Doctor held up his hand. “But last night we were lucky. El might’ve been killed, so, this time, for a start, we need to make sure that I can see him too.”</p><p>“The box.” El pointed to the case the Doctor was carrying.</p><p>“Yep. Had an excellent, if smelly, godmother.” The Doctor smiled. It dropped, and the three of them stopped in their tracks, as a funeral procession came down the path.</p><p>“Oh no…” Vincent murmured. “It’s that girl from the village.”</p><p>The three of them watched as pallbearers and mourners walked past, bowing their heads in respect for the dead.</p><p>Once the funeral passed them by, El turned to the Doctor. “Plan?”</p><p>“Don’t have one.” The Doctor admitted. Well, he did sort of have one, but it was more of a general outline.</p><p>Either way, the Krafayis wouldn’t take any more lives.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0055"><h2>55. Vincent and the Doctor</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The crows cawed as Vincent set up his easel, planting it into the dirt, as he placed the canvas on it, getting his materials ready.</p><p>“And, be sure to let me know if you see any monsters.” The Doctor instructed, as Vincent sat down in his chair.</p><p>“Yes, while I may be mad,” He turned to look at the Doctor. “I’m not stupid.”</p><p>“No, quite.” The Doctor sat on the ground next to the painter. “And to be honest… I’m not sure about mad either. It seems to me depression is a very complex-“</p><p>“Shh…” Van Gogh hushed, getting into his element. “I’m working.”</p><p>“Well, yes.” The Doctor stammered. “Paint! Do painting!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I remember watching Michelangelo paint the roof of the Sistine Chapel!” The Doctor commented, as Vincent got the sky around the church painted first. “Wow! What a whiner! I kept saying to him, if you were afraid of heights, why’d you take the bloody job!?”</p><p>“Shh!” El hushed the Doctor for Vincent.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“And Picasso…” The Doctor huffed, as Vincent continued with the windows of the church. “Ghastly old goat. I kept telling him, ‘look, Pablo, concentrate! It’s only one eye, either side of the face.’”</p><p>“Quiet.” El ordered, smacking the Doctor on his side.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Is this how time normally moves?” The Doctor asked, sitting on a rock, staring ahead. “Really slowly… in the right order…” He got to his feet, marching over to the canvas. “If there’s one thing, I can’t stand, it’s an unpunctual alien attack.”</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to the Time Lord. “Did you forget your ADHD pills again?”</p><p>The Doctor spluttered. “What!? Where’d you learn that!?”</p><p>“I heard Aunt Sarah say that if you weren’t on medication, you probably need to be.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “Oh, that woman. Always-“</p><p>“There!” Vincent suddenly pointed. “He’s at the window!”</p><p>The Doctor whipped around, looking. “Where!?”</p><p>“There!” Vincent pointed again. “The one on the right!”</p><p>“As I thought, you two, stay here!” The Doctor ordered, breaking into a mad dash for the church entrance. “And don’t follow me under any circumstances!”</p><p>“…are you going to follow him?”</p><p>El snorted. “Yeah.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor strapped the scanner to his chest, pushing the old wooden door of the church open. The scanner beeped as the Time Lord entered the building, the Krafayis grunting as the Doctor entered further, checking the scanner over both sides of his shoulders as he slowly proceeded.</p><p>Taking the sonic screwdriver, the Doctor flicked it open, setting it to a setting that would stun the alien, as he proceeded in.</p><p>The scanner suddenly stopped, and the Doctor checked it, angling it towards the window. “Damn. He’s moved.”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly felt the wind get knocked out of him as the scanner shattered, and he fell to the floor.</p><p>“Dad!” El from outside upon hearing the glass break.</p><p>The Doctor shot back up quickly, sonicing the air where the Krafayis stood, the creature huffing in pain. The Time Lord made a break for the door.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted, appearing in the doorframe.</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor screamed. “Don’t do that! You scared the living- Never mind, we’ll talk about it in here!” He said, pushing her into a confession box, before climbing into the other side.</p><p><em>‘El… keep absolutely quiet.’</em> The Doctor mentally directed, El willing her breathing to steady in response.</p><p>The place went quiet, the only thing either of them hearing the Krafayis as it stomped around the church’s main hall.</p><p>The wall next to El suddenly exploded.</p><p>“Never mind, I think he heard us!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Hey!” Vincent bellowed from outside, “Are you looking for me, sonny!? Come on! I’m right here!”</p><p>“That’s got to be the most Scottish Dutchman I’ve ever seen!” The Doctor remarked sprinting out, pulling El out of the other side, before running across the church to get behind Vincent. Sonicing the air where Vincent was attacking with the chair, the Doctor looked to the painter. “Doing anything?”</p><p>“No!” Vincent shook his head.</p><p>Deciding to retreat, the Doctor pulled El outside, while Vincent kept the Krafayis at bay.</p><p>“Whare is he!?” The Doctor frantically looked around.</p><p>“Where do you think he is, you idiot!?” Vincent replied. “Use your head!”</p><p>The Doctor soniced the air again. “Anything!?”</p><p>“Nothing!” The artist informed. “In fact… he seemed to rather enjoy it.”</p><p>“Eugh. El?” The Doctor turned to her.</p><p>“Can’t see it, can’t move it!” The girl told him.</p><p>The Doctor took a few steps back.</p><p>“Duck!” Vincent shouted, the Time Lord immediately dropped, as the Krafayis’s invisible tail swept the air over the Doctor. “Left!”</p><p>The Doctor bobbed to his right, before being thrown through the air, hitting the wall.</p><p>“Sorry, my left!”</p><p>“This is no good at all.” The Doctor grumbled, getting to his feet. “Run like crazy and regroup!”</p><p>“In here!” El pushed the door to the crypt open, ushering Vincent and the Doctor inside.</p><p>The three of them pushed against the door as the Krafayis tried to hold it open, jamming its foot in the doorframe.</p><p>Vincent stomped the invisible clawed foot, the monster screeching as it pulled away, the door slamming shut now that the space was empty.</p><p>“Right, okay, here’s the plan.” The Doctor flopped back against the door. “El, Vincent…” He trailed off.</p><p>“What’s the plan!?” El demanded.</p><p>“I don’t know!” The Doctor replied. “All I know is that in the future the only thing I’m using this screwdriver for is screwing in screws!”</p><p>“Give me a second,” Vincent told them, “I’ll be back.” He outlined, running out the back.</p><p>“I suppose we could try talking to him.” The Doctor considered.</p><p>“Talking?” The girl demanded once more.</p><p>“Well, yes.” The Doctor said. “Might be interesting to know his side of the story.”</p><p>The Krafayis screeched.</p><p>“Though maybe he’s not in the mood for conversation.”</p><p>The Krafayis banged against the door, the Doctor still holding it shut.</p><p>“Well, no harm in trying!” The Time Lord spun around, placing his hands on the wood. “Listen. Listen!” The Doctor bellowed, the banging ceasing immediately in response. “Now, I <em>know </em>you can understand me even though you won’t know <em>why </em>you can understand me. I also know that no one’s talked to you for a pretty long stretch, but please… listen. I also don’t belong on this planet.” He sympathized. “I am also alone. If you trust me I’m sure we can come to some kind of understanding. And then… and then, who knows?”</p><p>The glass on the other side of the room suddenly shattered, heavy footfalls thudding against the stone, as the Krafayis’s breathing disturbed the dust under it.</p><p>A flag suddenly tipped over, as the Krafayis knocked into it, running into the wall.</p><p>“Over here, mate!” Vincent came back from nowhere, brandishing his easel like a pitchfork, pointing the spikes on the bottom in the direction of the alien.</p><p>“What’s it doing?” The Doctor questioned, putting himself and El behind the man.</p><p>“It’s moving around the room, feeling its way around.” The artist answered.</p><p>The Doctor frowned. “What?”</p><p>“It’s like its trapped.” Vincent said, looking at the Krafayis. “It’s moving around the edges of the room.”</p><p>“Oh… I am stupid.” The Doctor muttered.</p><p>“Yes, you are.” El confirmed. “But we’ll talk about it later.”</p><p>“No, but listen!” The Doctor ran over to their position. “Why does it attack and never eat its victims?” He asked, lowering his voice. “Why was it abandoned by its pack and left here to die? And why is it feeling its way helplessly around the walls of the room?”</p><p>The Krafayis screeched as it knocked into a statue.</p><p>“It can’t see.” The Doctor looked to them. “It’s blind. Which explains why it has such perfect hearing!” He bitterly shouted.</p><p>“Yes, which unfortunately also explains why it’s now turning around and heading straight for us!” Vincent shot to his feet.</p><p>“Stupid!” El smacked the Doctor on the arm.</p><p>“Vincent,” The Doctor got up, pulling her up as well, standing behind Vincent, as the painter pointed his easel. “Vincent, what’s happening?”</p><p>“It’s charging now, get back!” He warned. “Get back!” Vincent repeated, the floor thumping as the Krafayis charged.</p><p>Vincent staggered slightly as the Krafayis hit the end of the easel, howling in pain. The easel was pulled up, Vincent holding onto the end, thrashing about, as the easel dug deeper into the alien’s flesh.</p><p>The artist dropped, and the Krafayis howled, stumbling back, before it fell, the only indication the creature was there being the easel floating about a foot off the ground.</p><p>“He wasn’t without mercy at all.” Vincent mournfully took off his hat, as they slowly approached the dying alien. “He was without his sight… I didn’t mean that to happen.” He breathed, as the Doctor crouched by the Krafayis’s side, placing a hand on empty air, feeling the alien’s breathing slow. “I only wanted to wound it. I didn’t mean to…”</p><p>The Krafayis warbled, as El stood by the Doctor, holding onto him as the creature bled out.</p><p>“He’s trying to say something…” The Doctor spoke. “I’m having trouble making it out, but I think he’s saying… ‘Afraid. I’m afraid.’” The Time Lord tried kindly stroking the dying creature. “Shh… Don’t worry. It’s okay. You’ll be fine…”</p><p>The Krafayis finally stopped, and the Doctor sighed, rubbing his face as he stood up.</p><p>“He was frightened… and he lashed out. Like humans who lash out when they’re frightened.” Vincent recognized. “Like the villagers who hate me… Like the children who throw stones at me.”</p><p>The Doctor slowly nodded, looking down. “Sometimes… winning is no fun at all.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The three of them lay in the grass in a ring, looking up at the starry night sky above, stairs twinkling faintly as the moon hung up there, like it was watching the three as well.</p><p>“Hold my hand,” Vincent held out both his arms, the three of them all joining hands as they stargazed. “Try to see what I see… We’re so lucky we’re still alive to see this beautiful world.” The painter smiled, gazing into the sky. “Look at the sky. It’s not dark and black and without color. The black is in fact deep blue. And over there!” He pointed. “Lighter blue. And blowing through the blueness and the blackness, the wind swirling through the air, and then shining, burning, bursting through! The stars!”</p><p>The Doctor smiled as he skimmed the surface of Vincent’s mind, allowing him to truly see the sky as Vincent saw it, and then he passed that along to El as well.</p><p>“Can you see how they roar their light?” Vincent asked, as from the perspective of the other two, it looked like the stars in the sky began to swirl, light streaming between them. “Everywhere we look, the complex magic of nature blazes before our eyes.”</p><p>Blue began to swirl, the sky flowing like water, as the moon began to glow gold from the perspective of the two...</p><p>A Starry Night, indeed.</p><p>“I’ve seen many things, Vincent.” The Doctor softly smiled, as he let the image fade. “But you’re right… nothing quite as wonderful as the things you see.”</p><p>“…I will miss you terribly, Doctor.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I only wish I had something of real value to give you.” Vincent apologized, birds singing as the gold light of the morning sun cast itself down upon the Earth.</p><p>The Doctor giggled giddily, as he held the self-portrait in his hand by Vincent’s face. “No, no, I could never accept such an extraordinary gift.”</p><p>“Very well.” Vincent took the portrait back from the Time Lord. “You are not the first to decline such an offer. El,” He pointed to the child, “You keep this idiot from getting himself killed, understand?”</p><p>The girl mimicked the motion she’d seen the Doctor perform, giving Vincent a two-fingered salute. “Got it.”</p><p>“Doctor, my friend,” Vincent vigorously took the Time Lord’s arm. “We have fought monsters and we have won… On my own, I fear I may not do as well.”</p><p>“…Bah.” The Doctor pulled Vincent into a hug.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” The Doctor inquired as he and El walked away from Vincent’s house.</p><p>The girl looked down at her stomach. “Hungry.”</p><p>“Well then, no, you’re not thinking what I’m thinking.” The Doctor came to a stop. He spun around, back to the house. “Vincent!”</p><p>The Dutchman poked his head out the window, brush held between his teeth as he was already starting work on another painting.</p><p>“Got something I’d like to show you.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Now, you know we’ve had quite a few chats about the possibility of there being something more to life than normal people imagine?” The Doctor rambled as they walked down the alley, back to the blue box waiting at the end.</p><p>The Doctor stopped, groaning as he looked at the flyers plastered all over the outside of the TARDIS. Shaking his head, he nevertheless continued.</p><p>“Yes.” Vincent answered.</p><p>“Well,” The Doctor chuckled, “Brace yourself, Vinny.”</p><p>Taking the key, the Doctor cut a line down the flyers at the door seam, before placing the key in the lock, pushing the door open, before stepping aside.</p><p>Vincent poked his head in first, gasping at the colossal space inside.</p><p>The Doctor and El glanced at each other, keeping from laughing, as Vincent felt his way around the outside of the TARDIS.</p><p>“How come I’m the crazy one and you two have stayed sane?” Vincent asked, finally stepping into the TARDIS fully.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled, placing Vincent’s hat on the coat rack as he and El followed, shutting the door.</p><p>“What do these things all do?” Vincent asked, stepping up to the console.</p><p>“Oh, a huge variety of things.” The Doctor answered, moving around the control unit. “This one here, for instance, plays soothing music!” He hit the radio dial on the communications panel, a classical station from Earth emitting from the speaker. “While this one makes a rather significant amount of noise.” He pushed the dematerialization lever forward, the ship thudding. “And this one makes everything go absolutely tonto!” He pushed the throttle forward, the TARDIS launching into movement a microsecond later.</p><p>Vincent stumbled around, laughing, as the TARDIS moved.</p><p>“And this one?” Vincent pointed.</p><p>“THAT’S THE FRICTION CONTRAFIBRULATOR!” The Doctor’s eyes bugged out as he moved Vincent away from the control.</p><p>“And this?” Vincent pointed to the yellow and red buttons.</p><p>“Ketchup, mustard.” El pointed to each one.</p><p>“Nice.” Vincent laughed, turning to grab the Doctor. “Come on! Come back to the café and we can talk all about the wonders of the universe!”</p><p>“Ah,” The Doctor smiled, holding up a finger as the TARDIS completed the rematerialization sequence. “Good idea, but there’s a little something I want to show you first.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The posters that had been plastered on the TARDIS burned away, fire being smothered out as the scraps landed in the faint snowfall.</p><p>The doors opened, the Doctor, El, and Vincent stepping out.</p><p>“Where are we?” Vincent breathed, looking around, as the sounds of car horns and ambulance sirens reached his ears.</p><p>“Paris.” The Doctor answered, spinning around. “2010 AD. And this is the mighty Musée d’Orsay.” He threw an arm around Vincent’s shoulder, gesturing. “Home to many of the greatest paintings in history.”</p><p>“That’s wonderful.” Vincent smiled. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, as he looked to the couple walking by, holding a radio.</p><p>“Ignore that.” The Doctor instructed. “I’ve got something more important to show you.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The trio walked up the stairs of the main hall, Vincent looking around at all the art exhibits in wonder, almost childlike awe, as the two time travelers led him on.</p><p>The Doctor struck a pose in front of a statue, giggling slightly, as he guided Vincent to continue.</p><p>------------</p><p>They reached the Van Gogh exhibit, and Vincent stopped, looking around.</p><p>His jaw dropped slightly, as he saw all the people looking at his paintings. <em>Admiring </em>his paintings. Taking pictures of them, talking about each one and what made it great.</p><p>“Dr. Black,” The Doctor caught the man’s attention.</p><p>“Yes?” Black turned to the Time Lord.</p><p>“We met a few days ago,” The Doctor jogged the man’s memory as he led him slowly over to Vincent, still looking around in shock, “I asked you about the Church at Auvers.”</p><p>El smiled and turned Vincent to face in their direction.</p><p>“Oh, yes.” Black recalled, “Glad to have been of help. You were nice about my tie.”</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor chuckled, “And today is another cracker, if I may say so. But, I just wondered, between you and me, in one-hundred words…” He turned to Vincent to make sure the man was looking. “Where do you think Van Gogh rates in the history of art?”</p><p>“Well, um…” Black began, like he’d finally been asked the question he wanted to answer most. “Big question. But, to me, Van Gogh is the greatest painter of them all.”</p><p>Vincent turned to face the man, shocked beyond belief.</p><p>“Certainly, the most popular great painter of all time,” Black continued, “The most beloved. His command of color the most magnificent. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty.”</p><p>Vincent grew misty-eyed, looking around at all of it.</p><p>“Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and your pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world… No one had ever done it before. Perhaps no one ever will again. To my mind, that strange, wild man who roamed the fields of Provence was not only the world’s greatest <em>artist</em>… but also one of the greatest <em>men </em>who ever lived.”</p><p>The waterworks had started at that point, the Doctor turning to the painter.</p><p>“Vincent,” The Doctor shot over, uncaring of who heard them at that point, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, is it too much?”</p><p>“No.” The man shook his head, as the Doctor comforted him. “They are tears of joy.” He pulled back from the Time Lord, marching over to Dr. Black. “Thank you, sir.” He embraced the man. “Thank you…”</p><p>“You’re welcome.” Black blinked in confusion. “You’re welcome.”</p><p>“Come on…” The Doctor whispered to Vincent, as he pulled away from Dr. Black. “Come on.”</p><p>Dr. Black turned to go about his business, before freezing.</p><p>He looked between Vincent, and the self-portrait, before shaking his head. Vincent Van Gogh back from the dead to see all the people who loved his art?</p><p>Impossible.</p><p>------------</p><p>The TARDIS solidified, in a field not far from Vincent’s house.</p><p>“This changes everything!” Vincent said, upon stepping out of the TARDIS. “I’ll walk outside tomorrow, easel on my back, a different man! …Though I still can’t believe one of the Haystacks was in that museum. How embarrassing.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed. “It’s been a great adventure. And a great honor.”</p><p>Vincent laughed as he embraced the Time Lord. “You’ve turned out to be the first doctor ever <em>actually </em>to make a difference in my life!”</p><p>“I’m delighted! I won’t ever forget you!” The Time Lord smiled. “Ah… to hell with it.” He gave the painter a quick peck on the lips. “There’s one more historical figure off the list.” The Doctor pointed. “See about trimming that beard.” He recommended. “Come along, El.”</p><p>El nodded, but looked at Vincent, waving. “Goodbye, Vincent.”</p><p>The doors closed behind them, and Vincent watched, as the TARDIS vanished in faint light. The painter fixed his hat and went about his day.</p><p>…but not before wiping his lips.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Come on, dad!” El pulled the Doctor, “Let’s go see what he’s painted!”</p><p>El stopped at the Van Gogh exhibit, looking around at the place being exactly how it was at the very beginning.</p><p>“We have here the last work of Vincent Van Gogh, who committed suicide at only 37.” Dr. Black spoke from the other side of the room.</p><p>El’s face fell. She was sure, so sure…</p><p>“Hey…” The Doctor gently placed his hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”</p><p>“We couldn’t save him…” A tear fell from El’s eye. “We couldn’t save him.”</p><p>“Oh, El,” The Doctor pulled her into a hug. “No matter how hard you want to, how hard you try… you can’t always save everyone. But I will tell you what we did do.” The Doctor murmured into her ear. “…The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don’t always take away from the pain of the bad, but the bad things don’t spoil the good things and make them unimportant…” He smiled. “And we definitely added to his pile of good things. And, if you look…” He pointed over to the Church at Auvers.</p><p>“No Krafayis…” El allowed herself a smile as well.</p><p>“No Krafayis.” The Doctor echoed, tapping her nose.</p><p>The girl nodded slightly, looking around, before she froze. “Dad… look.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to follow her line of sight, and he too, stopped. Walking across the room, El’s hand clasped in his, they stopped in front of the painting… To a mirror of themselves in Vincent’s impressionist style.</p><p>“’Doctor Who.’” The Doctor read, with a slight smile. “’Doctor Who…’ You know what, El? …I think this is the best museum trip I’ve ever had.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0056"><h2>56. Adrift in the TARDIS</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Wind blew through a park as the TARDIS materialized, blowing leaves across the grass.</p><p>The door swung open and the Doctor poked his head out. “Sarah Jane! You will not believe what El did! Wait…” The Time Lord looked around. “This isn’t her attic…”</p><p>A loud bang tore through the Doctor’s ears as he was pushed out of the TARDIS, the doors swinging shut by themselves as he fell to the ground.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor rolled over, watching as the TARDIS flickered unsteadily before vanishing. “El!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ah!” El grunted, holding onto the console as sparks showered from the ceiling. She pulled the scanner down, looking at it. “Dad, it says we’re somewhere called Essex!”</p><p>The console room finally stabilized as El looked around. “Dad?”</p><p>“Okay, think, um…” El muttered to herself, walking around the console. “There’s got to be something that can tell me what’s wrong…”</p><p><em>‘Fault… locator…’ </em>The TARDIS replied. If she had been human, she’d sound like she’d had the wind knocked out of her.</p><p>“Fault locator… fault locator…” El repeated, mumbling. “I don’t know what that is.”</p><p>
  <em>‘Helm panel… the lights…’</em>
</p><p>El walked over to the helm panel, looking up at the LEDs arranged on a black square. “Okay… I don’t understand.”</p><p><em>‘Dispenser…’ </em>The TARDIS guided, sounding rather out of it as something was deposited from the underside of the fabrication panel.</p><p>El walked over, and took it out, revealing it to be a book.</p><p>“’Type 40 TARDIS Operations Manual.’” El read. “Hm… didn’t dad say he threw this into a supernova?”</p><p><em>‘Can make… more.’ </em>The TARDIS explained. <em>‘Look in… environment systems. Fault locator.’</em></p><p>“Okay, okay…” El hurriedly flipped through the book. Despite being no bigger than a small paperback, the amount of pages El flipped through numbered in the hundreds, before she finally got to the section for the fault locator. “’When programmed to run a Basic Reality Check, this device gives a Ship Status Report, which lists all of the ship's in-stru-men-tation in coloured alpha-num-er-ic code.’ Alphanumeric?”</p><p>
  <em>‘Letters and numbers… quickly…’</em>
</p><p>“Okay… ‘To in-it-i-ate a Systems Check, locate the fault locator display panel on the primary control unit and hold down the button in the panel’s upper left corner for 3 seconds.’” El looked up from the book, walking over to the helm panel. “Why didn’t they just say find the lights and hold the button?” She wondered, nevertheless doing as the manual instructed.</p><p>The panel blinked, lights flashing in combination of letters and numbers, before looking back at the book.</p><p>“’The fault locator will display readouts of all systems in order. Green displays signal that the system in question is working properly. Yellow signals a standby status. Red displays a malfunction notice. Upon finding a malfunctioning system, the System Check will momentarily pause to allow the operator to view the error code.’”</p><p>El looked up from the book to the fault locator.</p><p><em>‘A113’ </em>Was displayed in flashing text on the LED’s flipping to a different section of the guide, but keeping her hand on the information for the fault locator, El found the list of systems and their codes. Moving down through the list, El found the one.</p><p>“’System A113: chameleon circuit.’”</p><p>
  <em>‘That… probably isn’t the problem, little one. Press the button to… resume… the sequence.’</em>
</p><p>El nodded, and reached up, hitting the button. The system check proceeded along, stopping just every once in a while, El checking with the TARDIS to try to work out the problem. By the end of it, the systems check was complete, but there was a problem.</p><p>According to the fault locator, and the TARDIS herself, everything was working normally. Shouldn’t say <em>fine </em>given the Doctor’s track record with maintenance, but nothing was out of the ordinary.</p><p>This issue was external.</p><p>El frowned, about to speak when the whole console room rocked. “Ah!” She held onto the control unit as the engines warbled. “Uh… stabilizers!” She remembered, running around to the navigational panel, hitting the blue button.</p><p>The console room calmed again. She was still adrift in a runaway TARDIS, sure, but at least she wasn’t stumbling around.</p><p><em>“El, El, hello? El!” </em>A voice came out from a speaker on the console.</p><p>“Dad!?” She looked up.</p><p><em>“If you can hear me, and I hope to God you can, go over to the mechanical panel.” </em>The Doctor recommended. <em>“There’s a little microphone on a hook, hold down the button on it to speak.”</em></p><p>El reached up for the little silver microphone, holding down the button. “Hello? Dad, can you hear me?”</p><p><em>“Oh thank God…” </em>The Doctor let out a relieved sigh. <em>“Quick, talk to me, what’s going on?”</em></p><p>“Um… the TARDIS had me read through the manual.” El explained. “She and I couldn’t find what was wrong.”</p><p>
  <em>“…she?”</em>
</p><p>“Yeah, she talked to me. She sounded like a woman.”</p><p>
  <em>“El… not even I can hear the TARDIS. The closest thing she and I come close to talking like normal people is Morse code through the console.”</em>
</p><p>“Oh… wow.” El breathed.</p><p><em>“Yeah, wow… wait a minute, stupid Doctor!” </em>A sound echoed through like the Doctor had smacked himself. <em>“Never mind you being able to hear the TARDIS, are you okay?”</em></p><p>“A little shaken.” El answered, rubbing a little bruise where she’d slammed into the console. “But fine. I turned the boring-ers on.”</p><p><em>“Ah, that’s my girl! Only your second lesson, and you already know your way around the console like a pro!” </em>The Doctor’s proud smile was in his face. <em>“Now, first thing’s first, situational update. What have you been doing in there?”</em></p><p>“We looked at the fornicator-“</p><p>
  <em>“MY GOD! FAULT LOCATOR, EL, FAULT LOCATOR! You’re going to give me a heart attack…”</em>
</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “But there’s nothing wrong with the TARDIS.”</p><p>
  <em>“No, no, there are plenty of things wrong with the TARDIS, most of them my fault, but never mind that. Since we’re getting external interference you need to do a scan. Pull around the monitor so it’s above the navcom keyboard.”</em>
</p><p>“Okay,” El did, pulling the microphone across.</p><p>
  <em>“Now, find the switch on the monitor and set it to mode seven.”</em>
</p><p>“Right.”</p><p>
  <em>“You should see a little system menu called TARDOS. Time And Relative Dimension Operating System. In the topmost menu, you should see an option that says ‘Initiate Local Scan.’ Use the arrow keys to navigate to it and hit the enter key.”</em>
</p><p>“Okay… it’s asking for… para-meters.”</p><p>
  <em>“Set the search zone to local time and a hundred-mile radius.”</em>
</p><p>“Got it.”</p><p>
  <em>“Now, let that run, and when it’s finished, let me know what it says.”</em>
</p><p>“Okay… ‘Temporal Anomaly: Localized time loop causing engine interference.’” El recited, not really understanding what any of the words meant.</p><p><em>“Okay, okay…” </em>The Doctor anxiously sighed. <em>“Time loop means that the fourth-dimensional structure of time is going all wibbly. The TARDIS can’t land because it’d be like… an airplane trying to land dead in the middle of a thick jungle without a runway. I’ve got to shut the problem down here that way the TARDIS can land.”</em></p><p>“Can’t I just… fly her somewhere else?”</p><p><em>“…I wouldn’t try it.” </em>The Doctor answered. <em>“The time vortex for this area is going to be full of nasty anomalies. If you keep the TARDIS inside the area of effect, it should be safe… relatively.”</em></p><p>“Relatively?”</p><p>
  <em>“Safer than trying to pilot her out. You’d have to disengage the materialization protocol and if you don’t do that properly, then… Well, let’s not worry about that. Just focus on keeping the TARDIS under control.”</em>
</p><p>“Under control.” El repeated, nodding. “How?”</p><p><em>“Well, you’re going to have to keep her within the boundaries of our little… Vortex Hurricane. Yeah, that’s a good name… Staying close to the eye of the storm will keep the TARDIS stable, like an actual hurricane… I wish I was onboard with you, El, but you’re going to have to do this on your own. Use the directional pointer to steer the TARDIS further back into the Vortex Hurricane’s eye, use the throttle to slow down, but </em> <strong>don’t </strong> <em>try to land her.”</em></p><p>“H-How will I know when I get close to the edges?” El asked.</p><p>
  <em>“You’re psychic already. The TARDIS will alert you when you get close to the safe zone.”</em>
</p><p>“Okay…” El pulled the throttle back, but not all the way, the engines slowing, as the TARDIS sent a warning for her to turn around, the girl moving the little lever to twist the bronze telescope around, pointing away from the edge. “What are you going to do?”</p><p>
  <em>“I have absolutely no idea- Oh. Hold on…”</em>
</p><p>“What is it?” El inquired.</p><p>
  <em>“A card in a shop window… With your handwriting. Least, I think it’s yours. Haven’t seen you do very much writing since you came on board the TARDIS but it’s addressed to me and signed ‘011’ so it’s the only thing that makes any sense… I’ll need cash, my UNIT account should do nicely… I’ll be back in a tick, don’t go anywhere!”</em>
</p><p>El was about to respond before the line went dead. “Not like I can.” She grumbled, placing the microphone back.</p><p>--------</p><p>El had stood around inside the console room for, what was from her perspective, only about twenty minutes. Being in the Time Vortex meant that, while about a day had passed on Earth for the Doctor, time for El was much shorter.</p><p>Passing her time by reading a book, she waited either for the Doctor to call back, or for the TARDIS to warn her to tend to the controls.</p><p>Eventually, one of the two happened.</p><p>
  <em>“Earth to El, Earth to El. Come in, El.”</em>
</p><p>“I’m here.” El replied.</p><p><em>“Oh that’s not good, not good at all.” </em>The Doctor, even though El couldn’t see him, was obviously shaking his head. <em>“We need to fill you in about proper radio procedure.”</em></p><p>El sighed. “Maybe later. Did you fix it?”</p><p><em>“Well, I think I found the source at least. That card in the shop window was posted in front of an advertisement for a prospective lodger.” </em>The Doctor explained.</p><p>“Lodger?”</p><p><em>“Someone who pays you to live in your house but they’re not related.” </em>The Doctor answered. <em>“But never mind that. How’s the TARDIS coping?”</em></p><p>“Hm… Listen.” El held the microphone up to the Time Rotor, the sickened engines going unsteadily.</p><p>
  <em>“Oh, poor old girl… Has she talked to you since?”</em>
</p><p>“Just to warn me.” El replied. “I think it’s hurting her.”</p><p><em>“Well, she’s caught in a materialization loop while at the heart of a Vortex Hurricane.” </em>The Doctor replied. <em>“I’d be more surprised if she wasn’t in agonizing pain.”</em></p><p>“…Is there anything I can do for her?”</p><p>
  <em>“Being there, I think that’s all that matters.”</em>
</p><p>“Can you stop it?” El requested. “I can feel her pain.”</p><p><em>“Well, I don’t know what it </em>is <em>yet.” </em>The Doctor replied, springs squeaking in the background like he was standing on a bit of furniture. <em>“Anything that can keep the TARDIS from landing is big… Scary big.”</em></p><p>El swallowed, as her eyes widened. “Are you scared?”</p><p><em>“…It’s not exactly a </em>comforting <em>prospect.” </em>The Doctor sighed. <em>“Whatever it is, I can’t just go up there until I work out what it is and how to deal with it, and it is </em>vital <em>that the man upstairs doesn’t realize who or what I am. So no sonicing. No advanced technology. I can only use this cause we’re on scramble, to anyone else listening this conversation sounds like complete gibberish!”</em></p><p>El sighed, rubbing her face. “Do you <em>actually </em>have a plan?”</p><p>
  <em>“Course I do! I always have a plan. All I have to do is pass like an ordinary human being. Simple. What could possibly go wrong?”</em>
</p><p>“Don’t say that!” El commanded.</p><p>
  <em>“Why?”</em>
</p><p>“Because, you say: ‘Oh, what could possibly go wrong?’” El deepened her voice, exaggerating the Doctor’s erratic gesticulating, “And then, something bad always happens!”</p><p>
  <em>“Oh, so you’re just going to be snide, then? Well, you can forget about gyros with Hercules when I get back! Come on, El, you’re a human, tell me what humans do.”</em>
</p><p>“Uh…” She tried to draw on her only experience with being around other people in a normal capacity. “Video games and junk food?”</p><p><em>“Hm… I dunno. This fella I’m rooming with seems more like a football sort. Hang on!” </em>The Doctor suddenly changed tracks. <em>“Wait, wait, wait! El!?”</em></p><p>The engines banged, sparks showering as the console room remained stable, but that wasn’t saying much.</p><p>El covered her head as the lights in the room flickered, before going back to normal, the TARDIS stabilizing once again.</p><p>“Okay… I’m okay.” She sent back to the Doctor. “What about you?”</p><p><em>“Fine.” </em>The Doctor replied. <em>“Listen, I’m trying to work as fast as I can, but I need you to hold on. Go to the zig-zag plotter, set it to full.”</em></p><p>El reached down for the gearshift like device, the TARDIS letting out a mechanical purr in response.</p><p><em>“Good. That’ll keep you protected, at least for a little while.” </em>The Doctor told her. <em>“Now, I must not use the sonic… I’ve got work to do, need to pick up a few items.”</em></p><p>As the Doctor talked, El’s eyes locked on something across the console room. Its head was enormous, with sunken-in eyes and grey skin, four long fingers on its hands. It was wearing a suit, like the one the bad people had worn, but it was… leathery, almost like it was a part of the creature itself.</p><p> “HEY!” She shouted to the alien, getting ready to throw it across the room.</p><p>The TARDIS rocked and her line of sight to the creature broke.</p><p>El frowned… <em>‘Wait, what was I doing?’ </em>She wondered, the creature having been completely forgotten.</p><p>---------------</p><p><em>“Right, so, I’m going out,” </em>The Doctor’s voice came from the console about five minutes after the previous conversation. <em>“If I hang around here all the time, him upstairs might get suspicious. Notice me.”</em></p><p>El nodded, looking through a magnifying glass to a spot on the ceiling. Did the Doctor ever clean the place?</p><p>“What are you going out for?” El asked.</p><p>
  <em>“Football! Perfectly normal, perfectly human sport. And look, this jersey has 11 on it! I might keep it… Anyhow, TTYL, LOL, ROFL, YOLO!”</em>
</p><p>El blinked as the line went dead. What in God’s name…?</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“El? El!” </em>The Doctor called over the TARDIS engines and the sparking.</p><p>The girl held onto the console, trying to keep steady as the room shook, the stabilizers overwhelmed this time.</p><p>“It’s happening again!” El replied. “A lot stronger this time!”</p><p>
  <em>“What does the scanner say!?”</em>
</p><p>“Um,” El looked up, “A lot of nines! Is that good!?”</p><p>
  <em>“…yeah? Zig-zag plotter! Move it!”</em>
</p><p>El reached over, hanging on as she moved the shifter, looking at the screen. “Okay! It’s gone down to fives…” She reported as the console room stabilized again.</p><p><em>“Good…” </em>The Doctor let out a sigh of relief. <em>“Still, it means the effect is unbelievably powerful, and dangerous, but don’t worry. Dad’s a-coming.”</em></p><p>
  <em>------------</em>
</p><p>El let out another sigh as, for the fifth time in the past half hour, she switched the TARDIS around.</p><p>“Are you going to be okay?” She posed aloud to the timeship.</p><p><em>‘I… don’t…’ </em>The TARDIS hazily replied, like she was caught in a dream or was just very, very confused. <em>‘Not well.’</em></p><p>“Don’t worry…” El replied, before awkwardly patting the console to try and make the TARDIS feel better. “Dad’s going to fix it.”</p><p><em>“El.” </em>The Doctor radioed.</p><p><em>“That’s Eleven!” </em>A different man in the background spoke up. <em>“From the lab!”</em></p><p><em>“Of course, you can understand now, hurrah!” </em>The Doctor grumbled in response. <em>“El, I need you to do me a favor. Pull the scanner back around to the navcom keyboard, access the TARDIS databanks, and do a search for 79 Aickman Road, can you do that?”</em></p><p>“On it.” El replied, using the keyboard to navigate through the data system. “It might be a minute.”</p><p><em>“Well, in any event, I’ve worked it out!” </em>The Doctor boasted. <em>“With some help from a cat.”</em></p><p>El looked up. “A cat?”</p><p>
  <em>“Yeah! Actually, did you know, all cats in the universe, even the species on Earth, are descended from Gallifreyan cats? Bet you didn’t know that.”</em>
</p><p>“Makes sense.” El shrugged, still searching. “The whole nine lives thing. But what does that have to do with what’s happening?”</p><p><em>“Oh, right, it doesn’t. He’s got a time engine upstairs and he’s using innocent people to try and launch it.” </em>The Doctor explained. <em>“Whenever he does, they get burnt up, hence the stain on your ceiling.” </em>He directed to the man he was lodging with.</p><p><em>“From the ceiling!” </em>He finished in time.</p><p>
  <em>“Well done, Craig, and you, little miss El, almost get sent flying into a Vortex Hurricane strong enough to rip the TARDIS to pieces.”</em>
</p><p>Something on the other end of the line banged.</p><p><em>“People are dying up there!” </em>Craig exclaimed. <em>“People are dying- People are dying- People are dying-“</em></p><p>El yelped as she found the information, but the TARDIS hit another patch of catastrophic turbulence.</p><p><em>“Someone’s up there!” </em>The Doctor recognized, pulling Craig out of the loop.</p><p>The lights in the console room flickered, a deep ringing reaching El’s ears.</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted. “The Cloister Bell!”</p><p>
  <em>“Don’t worry, El, we’re stopping it! Craig, come on, someone’s dying… up there…”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Sophie. It’s Sophie that’s dying up there, it’s Sophie!”</em>
</p><p>El looked at the building plans on the scanner, and gasped. “Dad!”</p><p>
  <em>“Don’t worry, we’re upstairs now!”</em>
</p><p>“No, but you can’t be!” El replied.</p><p><em>“Why not?” </em>The Doctor questioned.</p><p>“It only has one floor!” El replied, staring right at the plans for the building. “There is no upstairs!”</p><p>She could hear the sonic screwdriver and a door creaking open.</p><p><em>“What!?” </em>Craig breathed.</p><p><em>“Oh… Oh. Of course! The time engine isn’t in the flat, the time engine </em>is <em>the flat… Someone’s attempt to build a TARDIS. Better than the Eldridge, at least.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“B-But, there’s always been an upstairs!”</em>
</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “Time travel!”</p><p><em>“Has there?” </em>The Doctor questioned Craig, not relaying El’s words. <em>“Think about it.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“Yes! …No. I don’t…”</em>
</p><p><em>“Perception filter.” </em>The Doctor explained. <em>“Keeps you from noticing anything out of the ordinary.”</em></p><p>El jumped, the TARDIS still shuddering like a car going highway speeds down a gravel road, as a woman’s scream tore through the speaker.</p><p><em>‘Poor woman… she sounds like… I feel right now.’ </em>The TARDIS coughed. Did she have vocal cords? No. Did she even have a throat? Also no.</p><p>Which should give you an idea of just how painful it was for her.</p><p><em>“Sophie! Sophie!” </em>Craig called. <em>“Oh my God, Sophie!”</em></p><p><em>“It’s controlling her!” </em>The Doctor shouted. <em>“It’s willing her to touch the activator!”</em></p><p><em>“No!” </em>Craig bellowed. <em>“It’s not going to have her!”</em></p><p>Suddenly, the screaming stopped, and yet, the TARDIS kept shaking</p><p><em>“What?” </em>The Doctor questioned. <em>“Why’s it stopped?”</em></p><p><em>“You will help me.” </em>A different voice stated.</p><p><em>“Right! Stop!” </em>The Doctor commanded. <em>“Crashed ship, okay. Hello! I’m Captain… Jack Harkness, Torchwood! Good, pin the blame on him if this goes pear-shaped… Please state the nature of your medical emergency! Well, not medical, but you understand.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“The ship has crashed. The crew are dead. A pilot is required.”</em>
</p><p><em>“And you’re the crash program!” </em>The Doctor recognized <em>“A hologram. What? You’ve been luring people here so you can burn them out?”</em></p><p><em>“You will help me, you will help me, you will help me.” </em>The voice glitched, switching between ages and even genders.</p><p><em>“Hush.” </em>The Doctor ordered. <em>“Human brains tiny, they just burn, but you’re stupid, aren’t you? You just keep trying!”</em></p><p>
  <em>“Seventeen people have been tried. Six-billion, four-hundred-thousand, twenty-six remain.”</em>
</p><p>“Dad, hurry it up!” El ordered.</p><p>
  <em>“The correct pilot has now been found.”</em>
</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “Great, he means you!” The TARDIS rocked like it had been hit, El holding herself up by the monitor’s handles. “What’s happening!?”</p><p><em>“The system’s selected me to be the new pilot!” </em>The Doctor grunted, as he was evidently being moved against his will.</p><p>“That’s good, right!?” El asked. “Can’t you fly it out of there!?”</p><p><em>“No!” </em>The Time Lord quickly replied. <em>“I’m too much for this ship! My hand touches that panel, the planet doesn’t blow up… the whole solar system does! No, worst choice ever, I promise you!” </em>He directed to the crash program. <em>“I’m telling you, stop this!”</em></p><p>The TARDIS banged again, El having the wind knocked out of her as she was sent into the console.</p><p>“Dad!” El screamed. “It’s getting worse!”</p><p><em>“It doesn’t want everyone, Craig, it didn’t want you!” </em>The Doctor began.</p><p><em>“I-I spoke to it, it said I couldn’t help it!” </em>The man remembered.</p><p><em>“It didn’t want Sophie before, now it does! What’s changed!?” </em>The Doctor howled in pain. <em>“Augh! No! I gave her the idea of leaving! It’s a machine that wants to leave! It wants people who want to escape and you don’t want that Craig! You’re mister Sofa Man!”</em></p><p>“Sofa Man!?” El repeated in confusion, as the glass floor under her began to crack. “Dad!”</p><p>
  <em>“Craig, you can shut it down! Place your hand on the panel and concentrate on why you want to stay!”</em>
</p><p><em>“Craig, no!” </em>Sophie shouted.</p><p><em>“Will it work!?” </em>Craig questioned.</p><p>
  <em>“Yes!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Are you sure!?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“…Yes!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Is that a lie!?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“OF COURSE IT’S A LIE!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“It’s good enough for me… Geronimo! …AAAAAAAAA-!”</em>
</p><p>El lost her grip, falling back into the railing around the upper platform as Craig’s screaming split her head. “Dad!”</p><p>
  <em>“Craig, think about it! What’s keeping you here!? What makes you want to stay!?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Sophie! I don’t want to leave Sophie! I can’t leave Sophie! I love Sophie!”</em>
</p><p>The viewport by the door exploded. “DAD!”</p><p>
  <em>“Oh, not now Craig, the planet’s about to burn! For God’s sake… KISS THE GIRL!”</em>
</p><p>“KISS THE GIRL!” El echoed.</p><p>‘Kiss the girl!’ A snippet of music blasted from the TARDIS’s radio.</p><p>The shaking suddenly stopped, before El heard a thud, and the Time Rotor stilled.</p><p>The TARDIS had landed.</p><p>The girl excitedly checked the scanner.</p><p>“Dad… you did it!” El laughed. “The TARDIS landed and the screen’s zeroes now! Minus ones… minus twos… minus threes… Woo!”</p><p>
  <em>“…big uh oh. Emergency shut down, it’s imploding! Everybody out, now!”</em>
</p><p>The moment those words left his mouth the line went dead.</p><p>“…Dad?” El questioned. “Dad?” A couple of seconds passed.</p><p><em>“Right, sorry. Just had to look at the fireworks.” </em>The Doctor replied.</p><p>El sighed in relief and flopped against the console.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Right, back in time,” The Doctor pulled one of the levers, back at his proper place behind the TARDIS’s controls. “Here, copy this over for me.” He handed El a tiny square of paper, a pen, and the note from the shop. “Just a quick pop-back to set things up and then we can go on our way.” He put a stethoscope in his ears, running over parts of the console.</p><p>El nodded and began to follow the lines on the note.</p><p>“Oh, rectifier’s playing up again…” The Doctor groaned, “Oh, I need to remember to change that will, too.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Will?”</p><p>“The room was only vacant because the previous lodger got a huge inheritance. Done yet?”</p><p>“Here.” El handed the scrap up to the Doctor.</p><p>“Right, be right back.” The Time Lord told her, dashing down the stairs to the door.</p><p>El looked up to the ceiling. “Okay?”</p><p><em>‘I’m… fine, little one.’ </em>The TARDIS replied. <em>‘Don’t fret. Now… I believe your father said something about gyros with Hercules?’</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0057"><h2>57. The Pandorica Opens</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>France, 1890</em>
</p><p>Vincent Van Gogh lay in his bed, crying out in anguish as the people inside his room tried to tend to him.</p><p>“Vincent!” Doctor Gachet tried to speak with the man. “Can you hear me? Please!”</p><p>“Ah!” Vincent screamed, tears falling from his eyes as the images seared into his mind played over, and over, and over, and over.</p><p>
  <em>Great fire. All things ending… The Doctor and El burning to death at the heart of it as silence fell across the universe.</em>
</p><p>“It’s not enough he goes drinking all day, now the whole town has to listen to his screaming!”</p><p>Gachet angrily turned to the woman. “He’s very ill, Madame Vernet!”</p><p>The woman shook her head, turning away, laying her eyes upon Vincent’s latest… terrible work. Not terrible in the sense that it was bad, though she did certainly think so.</p><p>“Look at this, even worse than his usual rubbish.”</p><p>But because the events depicted, even for those who knew not of the Doctor in any capacity, were so deeply disturbing…</p><p>The only correct reaction was the primal instinct to cower in fear.</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>Cabinet War Rooms, London, 1941.</em>
</p><p>“It was found behind the wall of an attic in France.” Edwin Bracewell, the Dalek android now more human than machine, regaled the Prime Minister, as they looked upon the painting. “It’s genuine, it’s a Van Gogh…”</p><p>Churchill walked over, taking the cigar out of his mouth. “Why bring it to me?”</p><p>“Because it’s obviously a message…” Bracewell replied. “And you can see who it’s for.”</p><p>“Can’t say I understand it.” Churchill placed the cigar back. “Though it is… unsettling.”</p><p>“You’re not supposed to understand it, Prime Minister.” Bracewell replied. “You’re supposed to deliver it.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>
  <em>Ealing, 2010.</em>
</p><p>Sarah Jane looked at the calendar in the attic worriedly. Three weeks since the Doctor had dropped her off. The Time Lord was notoriously unreliable with time, yes… but the TARDIS rather liked her. If the Doctor had told Sarah Jane he’d be back in a day, the timeship would make sure her damn self the Doctor got back in a day.</p><p>Something was wrong. Every fiber of her being agreed… but she couldn’t figure out what.</p><p>The phone on the wall began to ring, Sarah Jane going over to answer it quickly. “Hello? Doctor?”</p><p><em>“No.” </em>A familiar voice replied. <em>“And neither are you.”</em></p><p>“Oh, Winston.” Sarah Jane recognized. “It’s been quite a while.”</p><p><em>“Sarah Jane Smith.” </em>The Prime Minister returned. <em>“Indeed it has.”</em></p><p>“Now, pardon me for getting straight to the point, but I don’t believe phoning 2010 from 1941 is something you do every day.”</p><p><em>“No.” </em>The man sighed frustratedly. <em>“I’ve been trying to phone that infernal jalopy of his for the past five hours!”</em></p><p>“The TARDIS, yes… It does have a habit of routing calls around. Connects you to the person you <em>need </em>to see, not <em>want</em>.” Sarah Jane shook her head. “I’m afraid I haven’t had any luck with the Doctor either. He dropped me back here and said he’d be back tomorrow… that was three weeks ago.”</p><p>
  <em>“Then we have a problem.”</em>
</p><p>An eyebrow raised, though she really, really didn’t want to consider it. “…Why did you call, Winston?”</p><p>
  <em>“We’ve found something. Something disturbing. What do you know of a painting by Vincent Van Gogh, known as ‘The Pandorica Opens?’”</em>
</p><p>“Nothing. But hold on.” Sarah Jane held the phone away from her lips, “Mister Smith, I need you!”</p><p>With a hydraulic hiss, fanfare began to blast from nowhere as the fireplace and mantle opened up, revealing the computer behind it.</p><p>“Yes, Sarah Jane?” The computer inquired.</p><p>“I need you to run a search for me.” The woman prompted. “On a painting by Vincent Van Gogh, called ‘The Pandorica Opens.’ Year…” She spoke that last word into the phone.</p><p>
  <em>“1890.”</em>
</p><p>“1890.”</p><p>“Searching.” Mister Smith replied, screen flashing through images. “Search complete. There is currently only one production of the work, stored in the National Gallery’s Undergallery.”</p><p>“Okay?” Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow. “Let me see it.”</p><p>“Sarah Jane, I should warn you. You may find the contents… disturbing.”</p><p>“Yes, well, whatever it is, it has to do with the Doctor.” Sarah Jane replied. “I must see it.”</p><p>“…very well.” The computer reluctantly replied, bringing an image up on his screen.</p><p>Sarah Jane almost dropped the phone, before clutching it tighter. “No… Oh no…”</p><p>
  <em>“Now do you see why it’s so important I talk to him?”</em>
</p><p>“Mister Smith… call the Doctor. Now.” She commanded.</p><p>“Connecting…” The screen flickered. “I’m sorry, Sarah Jane, but the space-time telegraph will not connect. It is most likely a technical issue on the TARDIS’s end.”</p><p>“Damn.” The woman cursed. “How are we supposed to get in touch now?”</p><p>“…wait a moment.” The computer spoke up in… confusion? “I appear to be receiving… instructions.”</p><p>“Instructions?” Sarah Jane repeated.</p><p>“They appear to be… a method of calling the future. Sent by the TARDIS herself.”</p><p>Sarah Jane’s eyebrows knit in confusion. “What’s she playing at?”</p><p>“It’s possible the Doctor is currently in a location that prevents him from accessing the TARDIS communications systems.” Mister Smith answered. “I am otherwise uncertain as to why the call would need to be performed, however, it is well within my capabilities. The instructions are surprisingly simple. I could initiate the call now, if you wish.”</p><p>“…do it.” Sarah Jane ordered. “Winston, I’ll get in touch with the Doctor, don’t worry.”</p><p><em>“Good show, Miss Smith.” </em>The Prime Minister replied. <em>“And when you finally get back to him, make sure to smack that ridiculous hair off his head! KBO.”</em></p><p>“Mister Smith, make that call.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>Stormcage Containment Facility, 5145</em>
</p><p>River Song sat in her cell, flipping through the pages of her diary, reminiscing on old adventures. On some pages were illustrations of Daleks, on others the Doctor’s many faces. On a few pages were sketches of El, in various stages of her life (most of it forward-to-back), as well as some of the many people the Doctor had run into.</p><p>The phone rang across the way, a guard walking over to answer it.</p><p>“Cell 426.” The man held his helmet at his side, holding the phone to his ear. “The Doctor? You mean Doctor Song?”</p><p>River’s head shot up from the book, nearly dropping it, as she got up to her feet, running to the bars of her cell.</p><p>“Give me that.” River commanded. “Seriously, just give it to me, I’m entitled to phone calls.”</p><p>The man glanced around, before walking up, handing the phone over.</p><p>“Doctor?” River desperately spoke into the handset.</p><p><em>“No,” </em>Sarah Jane sighed, <em>“This is Sarah Jane Smith.”</em></p><p>“Sarah Jane Smith…” River repeated, starstruck. Even amongst the Doctor’s companions, Sarah Jane was legendary. “What’s happening?”</p><p>
  <em>“I’ve got a painting here that’s terrifying everyone who knows the Doctor out of their minds, he’s been AWOL for three weeks, and we can’t get into touch. We’re following instructions from the TARDIS that led us to you. Look into a painting called ‘The Pandorica Opens,’ then get yourself a vortex manipulator, get here, so then we can go and fix whatever mess he’s gotten himself into.”</em>
</p><p>River blinked. “How do you know we have… that here?” She inquired, trying not to clue the guard in.</p><p>
  <em>“Mister Smith’s displaying the call data. You’re in the fifty-second century. I’ve dealt with time agents before. Well… I should say one very particular time agent.”</em>
</p><p>“Harkness…” River shook her head, rolling her eyes. “The man is a letch. Where are you?”</p><p>
  <em>“13 Bannerman Road, Ealing, June 26, 2010.”</em>
</p><p>“Alright… hold tight.”</p><p>“Doctor Song?” The guard questioned. “Are you finished with that?”</p><p>River let the phone fall, as she reached down her shirt, pulling out a tube of lipstick.</p><p>She turned around, a pleasant smile on her face as she approached the bars, prepared to hand the phone back. “You’re new here… aren’t you?”</p><p>The guard awkwardly shifted. “First day.”</p><p>“Then I’m very sorry.” The woman apologized, before pulling him up to the bars.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Alarms blared at maximum as a team of guards ran down the corridors towards Cell 426. The team stopped at the open door, looking inside.</p><p>“Stay exactly where you are!” The newbie guard pointed his gun. He quickly glanced over his shoulder, as he kept the weapon trained on his target. “She had the lipstick, the hallucinogenic lipstick! She tried to use it on me!”</p><p>The guards in the team looked at each other confusedly.</p><p>The newbie wiped his lips, shaking his head. “Your tricks don’t work in here Doctor Song!”</p><p>Turns out, he was pointing his gun at a little doodle of River, a little speech bubble with a single word inside it.</p><p>‘Bye!’</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>Starship UK, 5145</em>
</p><p>River had heard Sarah Jane loud and clear and was now stalking stealthily through the darkened halls of the Royal Collection, searching around.</p><p>So many of the paintings were ancient, in disrepair. It’d make any art collector flinch in sorrow, never mind a time traveler who’d seen them at the prime of their existence.</p><p>River found the one she was looking for, and her stomach sank...</p><p>It was like Starry Night… with a hellish scene against its backdrop.</p><p>Yeah, okay, <em>now </em>she understood everyone else’s urgency. They had to get to the Doctor, fast.</p><p>River ripped the painting out of the frame and began marching back up the steps.</p><p>The lights activated all at once, and River froze, at the woman pointing the gun straight at her.</p><p>“This is the Royal Collection.” Liz Ten growled, keeping the gun trained straight at River’s head. “And I’m the bloody queen. What are you doing here?”</p><p>“It’s about the Doctor, ma’am.” River quickly answered, holding her hands up. “You met him once, didn’t you? I know he came here.”</p><p>Liz’s arm holding the gun slowly dropped, as a smile overtook her. “The Doctor?”</p><p>“He’s in trouble.” River slowly approached. “I need to find him.”</p><p>“Then why are you stealing a painting?” Liz asked.</p><p>River gulped. “Look at it…” She handed it over and watched as Liz unrolled it. “I need to find him and show him this.”</p><p>Liz froze, looking to River in despair.</p><p>------------</p><p>
  <em>The Maldovarium, 5145.</em>
</p><p>The overweight blue man, Dorium Maldovar, owner of the Maldovarium, chuckled as he sat across from River. “Now, word on the belt is, you’re looking for time travel.”</p><p>“Are you selling?” River asked in response, keeping a hand closely nearby her blaster. Dorium wasn’t exactly an <em>evil </em>man, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t shady. He’d sell her his entire stock, then turn around, knock her out, and harvest every last one of her vital organs.</p><p>Still, he was the man who had it all… And the man who could sell it to you. For a price.</p><p>Dorium snapped his fingers, a fish-like alien walking in, placing a box down on the table. “A Vortex Manipulator. Fresh off the wrist of a handsome time agent.” Dorium lifted the lid, before letting out a frustrated sigh, pushing it back to the alien. “I said <em>off </em>the wrist.”</p><p>The alien bowed, going to take care of it.</p><p>“It’s not cheap, Doctor Song.” Dorium looked to her. “Have you brought me a pretty toy?”</p><p>River smiled, reaching up to her ear, pulling off one of her earrings. “This is a Calisto Pulse. It can disarm micro explosives from up to twenty feet.”</p><p>Dorium furrowed his brow in consideration. “What kind of micro-explosives?” He asked, taking a swig of his drink.</p><p>River smiled. “Like the kind I just put in your wine.”</p><p>Dorium glanced down in the glass and scowled.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ahaha!” The Doctor laughed, darting around the TARDIS console as the ship landed. “I can’t believe I’ve never thought of this before! It’s genius!” The ship settled as the Doctor took the lead over to the door.</p><p>“Where are we?” El asked, following closely behind.</p><p>“Planet One.” The Doctor answered with a giddy smile. “The oldest planet in the universe, and there’s a cliff of pure diamond, and, according to legend, on the cliff, there’s writing. Letters fifty feet high from the dawn of time, and no one knows what it says because no one’s translated it.”</p><p>“Until now.” El finished, getting at what the Doctor was saying.</p><p>The Time Lord nodded. “Exactly.”</p><p>He pulled the door open and stepped out first.</p><p>Instantly, the Doctor’s good mood soured, and he let out a sigh.</p><p>El, however, had the opposite reaction, as she laughed.</p><p>‘HELLO SWEETIE’</p><p>-----------</p><p>Following the space-time coordinates under the words on the cliff face, the TARDIS materialized at the top of a hill in ancient Britain.</p><p>The door opened, and the Doctor and El stepped out.</p><p>“Right place?” El asked, looking around.</p><p>“Yep, just followed the coordinates on the cliff face.” The Doctor replied, checking his watch. “Earth. Britain. 1:02 AM. No, PM.” The Time Lord looked up, upon the camp below. “No… AD.”</p><p>A massive Roman legion went about their business, training for the battles ahead.</p><p>“The… Romans?” El asked.</p><p>“You know the Romans?” The Doctor looked down to the girl, who nodded.</p><p>“One of the only books Papa… Brenner would let me read.” El answered. “He liked the Romans.”</p><p>“…I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but he had good taste.” The Doctor remarked. “I like the Romans. Romans are cool.”</p><p>El shrugged. “I didn’t understand why.”</p><p>A Roman soldier came running up to the two, offering them a Roman salute, before bowing.</p><p>El blinked at the pink substance on the man’s cheek.</p><p>“Awe, true to Caesar!” The soldier bowed.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at El, before looking to the man. “Hi.”</p><p>“Welcome to Britain. We are honored by your presence.”</p><p>“Well, you’re only human.” The Doctor replied, thinking about what to do next. He wasn’t going to tell the soldier that he wasn’t Caesar. “Arise… Roman person.”</p><p>The soldier bowed his head respectfully once more, as he returned to his feet.</p><p>“What is a Caesar?” El asked.</p><p>“Technically, it’s pronounced ‘kay-sar.’” The Doctor replied. “And it’s a title. Leader of the Roman Empire.”</p><p>“Okay.” El nodded. “Why does he think you are one?”</p><p>“Cleopatra will see you now.” The soldier informed.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El with excitedly raised eyebrows. “Cleopatra… it’s been a while since I talked to old Cleo.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The soldier led them to a tent, larger and obviously more important than all the rest.</p><p>Inside was a woman sitting on an arrangement of pillows, dressed up as an Egyptian Pharaoh.</p><p>El smiled. “Aunt Sarah!”</p><p>The woman returned it. “Hello, El.”</p><p>The Doctor took two steps over to her, looking down with a frown. “…Where is she?”</p><p>“It’s my turn to be Cleopatra.” Sarah Jane answered. “We switch out day-to-day. What? Did you think I was going to let her have all the fun?”</p><p>“I was rather hoping you would.” River spoke up from the other side of the room, dressed as a manservant. “I hate being the manservant.”</p><p>The Doctor turned to River, scowling all the while. “You graffitied the oldest cliff face in existence.”</p><p>“And <em>you </em>wouldn’t answer your phone.” Sarah Jane snapped back. “Three weeks without so much as an answerphone!”</p><p>“Really?” The Doctor blinked. “Oh, well… It wasn’t on purpose, I swear!”</p><p>“I figured as much.” Sarah Jane replied, glancing to River. “Do you have it?”</p><p>The other woman rolled her eyes, but nevertheless produced a rolled up bit of canvas, presenting it to the Doctor.</p><p>“What’s that, then?” The Doctor inquired, looking at it.</p><p>“It’s a painting.” River answered. “Your friend, Vincent.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned as he snatched it out of River’s hand, unrolling it to place it on a table.</p><p>“He didn’t just have depression, did he?” Sarah Jane asked, as she got up to join the others over the painting. “He had some form of time sensitivity.”</p><p>“Time sensitivity?” El repeated.</p><p>“A sixth sense attuned to the fourth dimension.” River answered for Sarah Jane. “Very, very rare in humans. But some do have it. That’s how you get prophets like Nostradamus and Rasputin.”</p><p>The Doctor finished unrolling the painting, he and El stiffening in terror.</p><p>“Dad…” El swallowed, grasping the Time Lord. “Dad, what is this?”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at the painting, unable to provide her with an answer.</p><p>Swirls of orange, like a twisted opposite of Starry Night, were plastered against a dead back background. At the center of the painting, very obviously meant to be viewed, was a blue box, exploding into the flame.</p><p>“’The Pandorica Opens.’” River answered. “Also known as ‘Blue Box Exploding.’”</p><p>El swallowed. “Why’s she exploding?”</p><p>“Well, it’s a warning, obviously.” River replied. “Trouble is… we can’t piece together what sort of warning.” She outlined, as the Doctor flopped down in a nearby chair.</p><p>Sarah Jane nodded, placing her hands on her hips. “We couldn’t be sure if it was a ‘stay away from here no matter what you do’ or if it was ‘get here and take care of it before it can destroy you.’”</p><p>“But how did you know it was here?” El inquired.</p><p>“Date and coordinates on the door sign.” River pointed.</p><p>“And it’s called ‘The Pandorica Opens…’ Ominous.” The Doctor sighed, trying to remain level-headed.</p><p>“The Pandorica… like that fairytale.” El remembered.</p><p>“Fairytale?” Sarah Jane repeated. “What fairytale?”</p><p>“The old stories say that it was a… prison, of sorts.” River explained, shrugging, unsure of the exact terminology. “And it was built to contain the most feared thing in all the cosmos.”</p><p>“But, it <em>can’t,</em>” The Doctor got to his feet, pacing around. “Be real! It’s just a fairytale!”</p><p>“So are you, in some cultures.” Sarah Jane replied.</p><p>“Regardless, it <em>is </em>here, and it is <em>opening.</em>” River stated, trying to get the Doctor to focus. “And it has something to do with the TARDIS exploding.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, grabbing a series of scrolls nearby.</p><p>“It’s been buried here for centuries; you won’t find it on a map.” River shook her head.</p><p>“No, but if you buried something dangerous…” The Doctor began, thinking. “Wouldn’t you want to know where you put it?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0058"><h2>58. The Underhenge</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El sat in front of the Doctor as he took the reins of the horse. Tracing the coordinates on the map, the Doctor had quickly found the place they were looking for.</p><p>Stonehenge.</p><p>The group ran into Stonehenge on a mission, El looking around curiously at the ancient stone monument. She’d seen big buildings before, sure, but something so <em>old, </em>so far into the past… it was quite unlike anything else.</p><p>“It’s old…” El placed a hand on one of the stones, as River fiddled with her scanner, Sarah Jane with her scanner watch, while the Doctor soniced the area.</p><p>“It’s been here for thousands of years at this point.” River explained, tapping a series of commands into the device. “The first great construction project by humankind… that is, if it’s actually human in origin.” She frowned as the device beeped. “Doctor, I’m picking up fry particles all over this site.”</p><p>“Same here,” Sarah Jane confirmed. “Somebody’s fired an energy weapon here.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, standing on top of one of the overturned stones. “If the Pandorica is here, it contains the mightiest warrior in history. Now, half the galaxy would want a piece of that… maybe even fight over it.”</p><p>The Time Lord frowned, jumping down, before he placed an ear on another stone lying on its side. “…we need to get down there.”</p><p>El turned to the Doctor. “Down where?”</p><p>“I’ll show you.” The Time Lord replied. “El, if you’d please.”</p><p>The girl nodded and held out her hand. Focusing her mind, she began to move the stone. It was <em>heavy</em>, heavy or even heavier than a car, but still well within her capabilities, as it slid out of the way.</p><p>The stone settled, revealing a concealed set of steps leading down into the earth.</p><p>The Doctor peered in. “The underhenge…” He took first lead, as River shone a torch inside, the four gingerly moving down into the chamber.</p><p>Unbeknownst to them, however, they had missed something very, very important up top.</p><p>A metal head, like a futuristic helmet, lying on the ground.</p><p>Hydraulics hissed as it suddenly shifted.</p><p>“Systems… rebooting…” The Cyberman’s head spoke aloud. “Life-forms detected. Self-repair protocols… initiated.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Coming to the bottom level, the Doctor soniced a wall sconce, the flame igniting and illuminating the place just slightly as he took it in his hand.</p><p>With River’s help, they pushed open the door, and looking inside, awed.</p><p>A large metal cube, ten feet long on each side, stood in the center of the room, circular patterns etched into the side.</p><p>“The Pandorica…” The Doctor breathed.</p><p>“Definitely not just a fairytale…” Sarah Jane muttered.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El excitedly, smiling, as he walked further into the chamber.</p><p>The Time Lord’s foot suddenly clattered against something, and he looked down. An ancient, rusted Cyber-Arm. Time War Mondasian, just like the ones they’d encountered in the GSO base.</p><p>The Doctor looked back to the other three with trepidation, as he began to move towards the box, slower now. Why would a Cyberman arm be down there? Unless, it was an errant bit of debris left over from the battle. Come to think of it, the Pandorica did look Cyberman in origin.</p><p>Time War-era Cybermen were able to convert many, many species, so why lock up whatever it was inside, instead of converting it? It must’ve been ludicrously dangerous, even for what the Doctor normally dealt with.</p><p>The Doctor placed a hand on the metal cube, running it up and down. “There was a goblin, or a trickster… or a warrior. A nameless, terrible thing soaked in the blood of a billion galaxies. The most feared being in all of creation. No one could stop it, no one could hold it, no one could reason with it… it would just fall out of the sky and tear down your whole world.”</p><p>“Oh, I know how it goes.” El recognized. “The Good Wizard tricked it.”</p><p>River huffed. “I hate good wizards in fairytales. They always turn out to be him.” She passed the torch off to Sarah Jane before running her own scan of the place.</p><p>“Hm… I didn’t notice it before, but it’s like Pandora’s Box.” El commented.</p><p>Sarah Jane turned her head. “Sorry?”</p><p>“Pandora’s Box… they only let me read a few stories in the lab.” El explained.</p><p>The Doctor huffed across the way. “They probably only let you read that one because it was a warning against being curious. Keep you nice and complacent.”</p><p>El crossed her arms. “I liked it.”</p><p>“Wait,” The Doctor’s head shot up, as he looked over to her. “Two things in the lab. One a book about Romans because Brenner liked it, Pandora’s Box to keep you from being curious about the outside… Both topics showing up here? Never ignore a coincidence… unless you’re busy, then always ignore a coincidence.” He amended, turning back to the Pandorica.</p><p>“So,” Sarah Jane began, “Can you get inside it?”</p><p>“Of course.” The Doctor replied. “Breaking into a prison from the outside is easy with the right kit, but I’d rather like to know what I’ll find first.”</p><p>River’s scanner beeped, and the woman’s eyebrows shot up. “You don’t have long to wait. It’s already opening. There are layers and layers of security protocols… all deactivating one-by-one. Like…” She pressed an ear to the box. “It’s being unlocked from the inside.”</p><p>The Doctor swallowed. “How long?”</p><p>“A few hours, <em>at most</em>.” River answered.</p><p>“What kind of security are we talking?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“Everything.” River looked at the scanner, growing disconcerted. “Deadlocks, time-stops, matter lines…”</p><p>“What could need all that…?” The Doctor wondered, pressing an ear.</p><p>“What could get past all that?” River posed the better question.</p><p>“Think of the fear that went into making this box.” The Doctor looked at it fearfully. “What could inspire that level of fear?”</p><p>Something clattered behind them, and Sarah Jane and El turned around. Seeing nothing, they turned back.</p><p>“Hello, you… have we met?” The Doctor wondered.</p><p>“Why would it start to open now?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“No idea.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“And how would Vincent know about it?” El asked.</p><p>“I told you, time sense.” River replied.</p><p>“And the stones,” The Doctor looked over to them, “They’re not just stones, they’re great big transmitters, broadcasting a warning to time and space. Everyone, everywhere. No wonder Vincent heard it. Even non-sensitives would be able to detect it.”</p><p>Sarah Jane sharply inhaled. “Doctor, did you say everyone?”</p><p>“But what’s in there?” The Doctor ignored. “Why this level of security?”</p><p>River inhaled as well, understanding Sarah Jane’s train of thought. “Doctor, everyone?”</p><p>“Anything that powerful,” The Time Lord paced back and forth, “I’d know. Why don’t I know?”</p><p>“Dad… you said everyone.” El recognized as well. “Who else is coming?”</p><p>The Doctor froze, blood going cold as he turned around. “Oh…”</p><p>El sighed. “’Oh’ what?”</p><p>“Okay,” River hurried over to one of the stones, “If these are transmitters, we should be able to fold back the signal.”</p><p>“Doing it!” The Doctor said, as River pressed the scanner to one of the stones. “Okay, should be feeding back to you now! River, what’s out there?”</p><p>River froze, jaw dropping as the scanner output its data. “Around this planet… there are no less than ten-thousand starships.”</p><p>El raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean no less? Doesn’t it show you?”</p><p>“I don’t know!” River replied. “There are too many readings!”</p><p>“What kind of ships?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>River pressed a button to listen in on the transmissions.</p><p><em>“MAINTAINING ORBIT.” </em>A Dalek proclaimed.</p><p><em>“I OBEY!” </em>A second Dalek replied. <em>“SHIELD COVER COMPROMISED ON ION SECTORS.”</em></p><p>“Daleks.” Sarah Jane gulped. “Those are Daleks…”</p><p>
  <em>“SCANS DETECT NO TEMPORAL ACTIVITY.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“SOFT GRID SCAN COMMENCING.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“REVERSE THRUST FOR COMPENSATORY STABILIZATION.” </em>
</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes darted about as the voices of his greatest enemies once again filled his ears. “Yes, okay, okay, Dalek fleet. Minimum twelve-thousand battleships armed to the teeth. Ah, but we’ve got surprise on our side!” He turned around, pointing. “They’ll never expect four people to attack twelve-thousand Dalek battleships, because we’ll be slaughtered instantly, so it would be a fairly short surprise! Forget surprise.”</p><p>“Doctor!” River gasped. “Cyberships!”</p><p>“No, Dalek ships, listen to them!” The Doctor retorted. “Those are Dalek ships!”</p><p>“Yes, Dalek ships <em>and </em>Cyberships!” River replied.</p><p>“Well, we need to start a fight, turn them on each other, that’s easy!”</p><p>Sarah Jane’s scanner watch beeped, and she looked down on it fearfully. “Sontarans! Four battle fleets!”</p><p>“Sontarans?” The Doctor looked around. “Talk about cross, who stole all their handbags?”</p><p>“Terileptil. Slitheen. Chelonian. Nestene. Drahvin. Sycorax. Haemo-goth. Zygons, Atraxi, Draconian…” River listed off. “They’re here… they’re <em>all </em>here!”</p><p>The Doctor turned to the box in fear. “What are you? What could you possibly be?”</p><p>The ground began to shake as something rocketed overhead.</p><p>Instantly, the Doctor spun, running back up the stairs to the surface.</p><p>Night had fallen, as an armada of starships, each one different in construction and species of origin hovered around Stonehenge.</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to the Time Lord, “What do we do?”</p><p>“Doctor, listen to me.” River began. “Everything that as ever hated you is coming here, tonight. You can’t win this. You can’t even fight it. Doctor, this once, please, just this once, you have to run!”</p><p>“Run where!?” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Fight how!?” River demanded in response.</p><p>The Doctor walked to the edge of Stonehenge, looking through a pair of binoculars. “Greatest military machine in the history of the universe…”</p><p>“What? The Daleks?” El asked.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor let the binoculars drop. “The Romans. River,” He turned to her, “Get back to that camp and get every last Roman you can.”</p><p>“What are you going to do?” River demanded in response.</p><p>“Oh, you know me.” The Doctor replied. “Go poking my nose where it doesn’t belong.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“So, what does this have to do with the TARDIS?” El inquired.</p><p>“Nothing,” The Doctor grunted, smacking the side of the Pandorica. “As far as I know.”</p><p>The girl frowned. “But in Vincent’s painting, she was exploding. Is that really going to happen?”</p><p>“One problem at a time.” The Doctor replied. “There’s force field technology inside this box. If I can boost the signal, I can extend it to cover all of Stonehenge. Could buy us half an hour.”</p><p>Sarah Jane crossed her arms. “What good is that?”</p><p>“Oh, Sarah, I’m disappointed!” The Doctor replied. “I figured you of all people would know there’s a lot you can do in half an hour.”</p><p>Something hit one of the walls, exploding, the three reflexively going behind the Pandorica to hide.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked down at her watch. “That Cyberman arm’s active.”</p><p>“Okay, um…” The Doctor glanced. “You know how sometimes I have really brilliant ideas?”</p><p>“Yes.” El answered.</p><p>The Time Lord flinched. “Sorry.”</p><p>The Doctor jumped out from behind the Pandorica. “LOOK AT ME I’M A TARGET!”</p><p>“You bloody idiot!” Sarah Jane roared as the Cyber-Arm fired, the Doctor jumping behind one of the stones.</p><p>“Don’t worry! Organic part died years ago probably so it’s just looking for fresh meat!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“How is that good!?” El demanded.</p><p>“It means it needs us alive! Stun blasts only!” The Doctor answered, “Um, let’s see… El, do you mind throwing that Cyber-Arm over here, please?”</p><p>“Why!?”</p><p>“Because I need to deactivate it and it’s made of metal tougher than most alloys on the planet!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>The girl shook her head, but complied, focusing on the source of the fire.</p><p>The Cyber-Arm flew through the air, firing at the ground, as it landed in the Time Lord’s hand.</p><p>“Ah, there we go…” The Doctor soniced the arm, the construct spasming before it went limp. “Alright, I think I’ve got it, but stay back just in case. It could be bluffing.”</p><p>“Bluffing?” Sarah Jane asked in response. “Can it do that?”</p><p>“It’s a very clever arm.” The Doctor replied. “Now, do as I say, and stay back.”</p><p>Sarah Jane put her hands up as she stepped back, leaning on one of the stones.</p><p>A rubber cable wrapped around her leg, and she looked down. “Doctor!”</p><p>The Cyber-Arm took aim, and fired a shot at El, the girl falling to the ground unconscious, but otherwise unharmed.</p><p>“EL!” The Doctor screamed, before the arm electrified, and he fell unconscious as well.</p><p>The cable pieced Sarah Jane in the leg, and she fell to the ground, as more cables, all of them running back to a Cyberman head unit, coming out of the neck, sparked and whipped around wildly.</p><p>Two more cables wrapped around Sarah Jane’s arms, as the head scurried across the ground.</p><p>Sarah Jane forced herself to stand, to a vantage point where she could effectively keep the head at bay.</p><p>Something began to sizzle as a line began to split down the faceplate of the head.</p><p>The faceplate split open, revealing a long rotten skull inside.</p><p>“Ah!” Sarah Jane held the head away, as the skull tumbled out.</p><p>The two halves of the faceplate began to snap, like pincers, as it tried to get at Sarah Jane’s head.</p><p>The woman turned and slammed the metal cranium into the wall, the wires’ grip weakening before the head dropped to the ground.</p><p>“Doctor? El?” She called, keeping the head in sight in case it tried to go anywhere.</p><p>Air hissed from the head’s mouthpiece before Sarah Jane felt a sting in her neck. “Ah!” Her hand shot up, pulling out a metal dart.</p><p>“You will be upgraded.” The head stated.</p><p>“Yeah?” Sarah Jane clutched her forehead, feeling a bit woozy. “You and what body?”</p><p>Hydraulic stomping cracked the dirt floor, as a towering body turned the corner. The body of a Cyberman, headless, missing one arm.</p><p>The discarded arm scurried over, pulling itself along by its fingers, before grabbing onto one of the bars on the head. A cord shot out from the empty arm socket on the main body, connecting to the main arm, pulling it up.</p><p>The arm twisted up as the cords coming from the bottom of the head wriggled around, before connecting to points on the neck. The head was pulled into place, the Cyberman twisting it around experimentally.</p><p>“Repair protocol at ninety percent completion.” The Cyberman announced, rust on its outer surface slowly vanishing. “Organic component required. You will be upgraded.” Its arms shot out as it began to slowly stomp forward.</p><p>Sarah Jane stumbled back, off-balance, as the anesthetic worked through her system quickly.</p><p>She grabbed a flaming torch off the wall, and swung it around, not hitting anything due to her vision going.</p><p>The Cyberman suddenly stopped. “Power systems failure. Unknown cause. You will be…” The Cyberman slumped over, falling to the ground, as its torso sparked.</p><p>In its back was an enormous hole, what could only be the Cyberman’s power source floating in the air. The small, sphere-shaped power source was suddenly crushed like a can of soda and dropped.</p><p>El wiped her nose, shaking her disorientation away.</p><p>“Good…” Sarah Jane shot El a thumbs-up. “Good going…” She complimented before falling.</p><p>El caught her, gently letting her down.</p><p>“Oh, eugh…” The Doctor groaned, eyes opening. “What happened? Am I dead? …If this is what it’s like to be dead then being dead is rubbish!”</p><p>“Dad.” El waved him over, “Look.” She gestured to Sarah Jane.</p><p>The Doctor quickly got to his feet, running over, scanning the woman over. As he did, he dimly registered Roman soldiers arriving above. “Okay, she’s fine just sedated.”</p><p>The same soldier from before came down to their level, walking across. “Sir.”</p><p>“Ah, good, Romans.” The Doctor patted him on the soldier. “Love a Roman. Good old River. What’s your name?”</p><p>“Claudio, sir.”</p><p>“Good, like that. Claudio. How many?” He questioned, looking around the underhenge for anything that they could use.</p><p>“Half century, sir.” The soldier answered.</p><p>“Ooh…” The Doctor grimaced. “Only forty? Not exactly a legion, is it?”</p><p>“Your woman deceived us all.” Claudio retorted. “The only reason you have any help at all is because these are extraordinary circumstances.”</p><p>“Yes, yes, I realize that.” The Doctor grumbled, “Ah!” His eyebrows shot up as he spotted some very big guns. “Cyberweapons! This is a sentry box, so that fella,” He pointed over to the Cyberman, “Was the sentry. Guarding the Pandorica. But why leave a Cyberman to guard it unless it was a Cyber-thing in the box? Okay, no, not Cyber-thing… I’m missing something, something obvious here…”</p><p>The underhenge shuddered as spacecraft flew overhead.</p><p>The Doctor looked up as the geometric patterns in the circles on the Pandorica’s sides began to glow green, moving like tumblers turning.</p><p>“Dad…” El looked over to the Doctor. “What’s happening?”</p><p>“The final phase…” The Doctor answered. “It’s opening. Claudio, this is about to be the single most chaotic fight you’ve ever taken part in. Get up top,” He instructed. “Tell your men to be ready! Go!”</p><p>“Yes, sir!” The soldier nodded, running off to do as the Doctor ordered.</p><p>The scanner in the Doctor’s pocket beeped, the Time Lord fishing it out quickly.</p><p><em>“You’re surrounded.” </em>River’s voice filtered out. <em>“Have you got a plan?”</em></p><p>“Yes!” The Doctor shot back, sonicing the Pandorica, trying to scan it. “Now hurry up and get the TARDIS here, I need equipment!” The Time Lord got to his feet, almost stepping on the Vortex Manipulator River had left behind, looking at the box scrutinizingly. “What are you? They’re all here, all of them, for you… what could you possibly be?” The ground shook again. “El, stay here!” The Doctor ordered, “I’ll only be a second!”</p><p>The girl watched as the Doctor ran up, and she sighed, shaking her head as she sat down.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0059"><h2>59. The End of the Universe</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Roman soldiers all looked around, wind blowing in their faces like a hurricane as the spaceships of Daleks, Sontarans, Cybermen, and a hundred others tore through the sky, hovering around Stonehenge.</p><p>The Romans’ ears were suddenly pierced by a loud ringing.</p><p>“Sorry, sorry, dropped it.” The Doctor apologized as the electronic whine went away. “Hello Stonehenge! Who takes the Pandorica, takes the universe! But, bad news everyone…”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly jumped up onto the stone in the center, towering above the Romans.</p><p>“Cause guess who!? Ha!” The Doctor laughed. “Listen, you lot, you’re all, whizzing about, it’s really, very distracting. Could you all just sit still a minute? Because I! AM! TALKING!”</p><p>Every last one of the vessels immediately ceased their movements, hovering still in the air.</p><p>“Right, now, the question of the hour is: Who’s got the Pandorica?” The Doctor continued. “Answer: I do. Next question: Who’s coming to take it from me!?” The Doctor threw his hands out.</p><p>Not one response came from any of the spacecraft.</p><p>“COME OOOOON!” The Doctor called. “Look at me! No plan, no backup, no weapons worth a damn, oh, and something else I don’t have; Anything to lose. So! If you’re sitting up there in your silly little spaceship with all your silly. Little. Guns. And you’ve got any plans on taking the Pandorica, tonight; Just remember who’s standing in your way! Remember! Every black day I ever stopped you! And then! AND THEN! Do the smart thing!” The Doctor shook his head. “Let somebody else try first.”</p><p>The Time Lord threw his arms out again, practically inviting them to strike him down.</p><p>Instead, the engines on each vessel powered up, the assembled fleet pulling away, night returning to normal again.</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor jumped down, tossing the communicator over to a smiling El. “That ought to keep them squabbling for half an hour.” The Time Lord did a double take. “Didn’t I tell you to wait?”</p><p>El only smiled wider.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The door slammed shut behind River, the woman throwing her jacket over the railing as she walked up to the control console.</p><p>Initiating the takeoff sequence, the engines ran loudly, vibrating the entire ship. They sounded off-pitch, deeper… <em>wrong</em>.</p><p>The console room lurched, River hanging onto the side of the console, looking to the Time Rotor worriedly.</p><p>“What’s wrong with you?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So,” El absent-mindedly kicked the ground. “What do we do now?”</p><p>“Well, I can stop whatever’s in the box,” The Doctor pointed to the Pandorica. “From getting out, they’ll cut their losses, and call it a day. Ah,” His eyebrows raised pleasantly, looking just behind El, as Sarah Jane came walking over, clutching her head. “Sarah. How’re you feeling?”</p><p>“My head is killing me.” She complained, stopping in front of the Doctor.</p><p>“Go ‘ah.’” The Time Lord ordered.</p><p>“Ah…” Sarah Jane’s mouth opened, the Doctor looking her over.</p><p>“Just a basic knockout serum.” The Doctor patted her on her shoulders. “Go upstairs, get some fresh air. Fresh will be better than stale to help your body work through it.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked up. “Is it safe?”</p><p>“Oh, not remotely.” The Doctor replied, turning to sonic the Pandorica. “Argh… hardened against sonics. It’s like whoever built this thing knew I was going to try to look in it!” He shook his head. “El, go up with her.”</p><p>“You just said it’s not safe.” El frowned.</p><p>“You’ve been traveling with me, when, ever, have things been safe?” The Doctor retorted. “Besides, she’s still not quite got her land legs yet. She’ll need a superpowered bodyguard to keep her safe while she recovers.”</p><p>“Right.” El nodded. “Come on, Aunt Sarah.”</p><p>“Right…” Sarah Jane allowed the child to lead her. “…since when did this whole ‘Aunt Sarah’ thing happen?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The engines groaned as the TARDIS lurched again, River trying to keep the timeship under control.</p><p>“What are you doing?” River wondered, looking over the controls. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>The ship rocked, River falling against the console as the ship tumbled down the Time Vortex. The woman pulled the throttle back, engines winding as the TARDIS landed.</p><p>In all her years, she’d never heard the engines whine. Groan, pop, wheeze, scrape.</p><p>Never whine.</p><p>“Okay…” River looked up as the room settled. “You’re okay now?”</p><p>She looked up at the console scanner, odd oscillating patterns making it impossible to view anything. The woman smacked it twice, nothing changing, before she moved over to the door. As she stepped out, she didn’t notice the monitor start to work properly.</p><p>
  <em>‘LOCATION: Earth. DATE: 11/11/1983.’</em>
</p><p>A crack shattered the glass on the scanner.</p><p>
  <em>‘Silence will fall…’</em>
</p><p>
  <em>-----------</em>
</p><p>River held a torch in her hand, looking around in confusion. “Why have you brought me here?” She wondered aloud.</p><p>The TARDIS had taken her to Hawkins Lab.</p><p>The place should’ve been being picked apart by UNIT investigators, a state that would last for three months as they poured through everything inside.</p><p>Yet, the place was totally deserted, empty, only a few short days after the investigation should’ve begun.</p><p>The woman took her scanner, activating it, as she walked down the corridors of the lab. She didn’t have any idea which section she was in, or how to get out.</p><p>She abruptly stopped, looking to two massive footprints seared into the linoleum tile.</p><p>“Okay… so, someone’s been here.” River stood up, continuing.</p><p>Walking down the corridor, she found a metal door knocked off its hinges, and proceeded into the room.</p><p>White tile lined the walls, a bed up in the corner, and no other furniture or anything else to speak of. The only thing decorating the walls was a single drawing, scribbled in crayon with stick figures. One of them had the word ‘papa’ over its head in a messy scrawl, the other one ‘011.’</p><p>River swallowed, fighting back tears as she realized she’d stumbled across El’s room. She’d known of the girl’s upbringing, of course… sympathized on a level no one else would quite understand. On some level, one could suppose, they were the same.</p><p>“Doctor, for once… I’m glad you have that bad habit of taking home strays.” River murmured, looking around.</p><p>Her eyes focused on something on the bed, and she reached out for it.</p><p>A book about the Romans.</p><p>Her eyes glanced over to the other object on the bed.</p><p>
  <em>Pandora’s Box.</em>
</p><p>“Oh no…” River breathed.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El looked around at the soldiers prepping themselves, and then to Sarah Jane, both wrapped up in blankets to keep away the cold of the winter night.</p><p>The girl looked around anxiously, wondering if, since <em>all </em>of the Doctor’s enemies, even the ones she hadn’t been a part of facing, were coming… would they be able to get out of it?</p><p>“Don’t worry.” Sarah Jane told the girl, seemingly reading her mind. “Your dad has a plan. I’m sure of it.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The communicator in his pocket beeped, and the Doctor held it up to his ear. “TARDIS, where is it?” He immediately demanded.</p><p><em>“Don’t raise your voice. Don’t look alarmed. Just listen.”</em> River instructed calmly, so that anyone who might be able to hear would only be able to make out her tone of voice and nothing else. <em>“They’re not real. They can’t be. They’re all here in this storybook… the Romans. The ones I sent you, the ones with you right now… They’re all in a storybook I found in El’s room in the Hawkins National Lab.”</em></p><p>“What are you even doing there?” The Doctor demanded in response.</p><p>
  <em>“It doesn’t matter. The TARDIS went wrong. Doctor, how is this possible.”</em>
</p><p>“Something’s using El.” The Doctor answered, calmly glancing at the Romans merely going about their usual business. “Using her memories.”</p><p>
  <em>“But how?”</em>
</p><p>“…Had anything else been there?” The Doctor questioned, glancing over his shoulder.</p><p>
  <em>“Yes, there were scorch marks in the corridor. If I had to guess, something seared them into the floor when it heated up enough to blow the door off.”</em>
</p><p>“If they’ve been to the lab… They’re basing all of this off her memories.” The Doctor swallowed. “But why?”</p><p>
  <em>“Doctor… who are they?”</em>
</p><p>“Projections, constructs… duplicates.”</p><p>
  <em>“But they were helping us, even my lipstick worked on them.”</em>
</p><p>“They might think they’re real.” The Doctor considered, whispering. “The perfect disguise. They actually believe their own cover story… right until they’re activated.”</p><p>
  <em>“It’s a trap, it has to be! They used El to create a scenario you’d believe, to get close to you.”</em>
</p><p>“Why!?” The Doctor paced back and forth. “Who’d do that? What for? It doesn’t make any sense!</p><p>Something exploded on the other end as the TARDIS entered flight, River yelping all the while.</p><p>“River?” The Doctor anxiously questioned. “River? River, what’s happening!?”</p><p><em>“I don’t know! It’s the engines!” </em>River answered as the TARDIS hissed. <em>“Doctor, there’s something wrong with the TARDIS, like something else is controlling it.”</em></p><p>“You’re flying it wrong.” The Doctor retorted.</p><p><em>“I’m flying it perfectly!”</em> River retorted.</p><p>The Doctor shook his head. “Where are you? What’s the date reading?”</p><p>
  <em>“It’s the eleventh of November 1983.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor’s hair on the back of his neck stood straight up. “You need to get out of there, <em>now.</em> Any other time zone, just go!”</p><p>
  <em>“I can’t break free!”</em>
</p><p>“Well then, shut down the TARDIS!” The Doctor instructed. “Shut down everything!”</p><p>
  <em>“I can’t!”</em>
</p><p><em>“Silence will fall.” </em>A different voice, unknown to River or the Doctor, announced in the TARDIS. <em>“Silence will fall.”</em></p><p><em>“…Someone else is flying it.” </em>River swallowed. <em>“An external force. I’ve lost control.”</em></p><p>“But how, why?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>A high-pitched droning suddenly came from everywhere at once, the Doctor almost falling to his knees, as all the Roman soldiers began to tip over, dropping the objects they held.</p><p>------------</p><p>El inhaled. “Aunt Sarah… something’s wrong.” She forced out, feeling <em>something </em>smash against her mental barriers.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked the girl over worriedly, focusing on her to the point she didn’t realize the Romans had become inert. “What is it? What’s wrong?”</p><p>“I…” El felt the first crack form, allowing a small bit of the other entity to bleed through. It was powerful, ancient… the brethren of the controlling force behind the Romans.</p><p>And the controlling intelligence behind the monster in Hawkins.</p><p>It couldn’t normally just go after minds, it had to leave a piece of itself in the body. But something out there it had found allowed it to go directly for El.</p><p>And it was succeeding.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Listen to me, just land her!” The Doctor commanded. “Anywhere! Emergency landing! There are cracks in time, I’ve seen them everywhere, and they’re getting wider.” The Time Lord explained, unaware of the Romans reactivating. “The TARDIS exploding is what causes them somehow, but we can stop them if you just land her!”</p><p>
  <em>“It’s not safe!”</em>
</p><p>Something whirred, and the Doctor’s head darted over, as two of the panels on the side of the Pandorica began to slide back.</p><p>The communicator fell from the Doctor’s ear, as he stared into the blinding light.</p><p>“Well now… Ready to come out, are we?”</p><p>----------</p><p>The Romans on the surface all began to march into the underhenge, as the Shadow slammed into El’s mental walls a second time.</p><p>“No!” El screamed, clutching her temples. “NO!”</p><p>“El!” Sarah Jane looked her over. “What’s wrong!?”</p><p>El tried to respond, but the intelligence wouldn’t let her. It was going to use her. Use her to kill.</p><p>No reason.</p><p>It just thought it was fun.</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“Doctor, I’m down!” </em>River reported.</p><p>“Good, now get out!” The Doctor ordered. “Failsafe protocol, the engines will automatically disengage if there are no lifeforms fit to pilot on board! Just get out of there!”</p><p>
  <em>“I’m going.”</em>
</p><p>“Run!” The Doctor bellowed, as he ran up to the Pandorica, beginning to sonic it.</p><p>The Romans raised their hands, fingers dropping down to reveal an inner layer of plastic, and gun barrels.</p><p>----------</p><p>River ran over to the door, grunting as she tried to pull it open, to no avail.</p><p>The TARDIS had deadlocked the doors.</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“Doctor!” </em>The communicator on the ground shouted. <em>“Doctor! I can’t open the doors!”</em></p><p>The Doctor crouched to pick it up, before he caught sight of the Romans, and their current states.</p><p>He was in <em>trouble</em>.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I… I can’t!” El cried, rocking back and forth as she desperately tried to fight back against the intelligence. She was a star burning in space…</p><p>It was a galaxy.</p><p>“Please… don’t make me!” El begged the entity. “I don’t want to!”</p><p>“El,” Sarah Jane placed her hands on the girl’s shoulders. “El, honey, what’s happening!?”</p><p>“You… you have to run.” El told her. “I can’t… I can’t…”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Doctor!” River shouted into the TARDIS’s phone. “I can’t open the doors! Doctor, please, I’ve got seconds!” She yelled, as a component on the console exploded.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Nestene duplicates…” The Doctor looked the Romans up and down distastefully, as two of them led him by the arms away from the Pandorica. “Living plastic dummies driven by the Nestene Consciousness.”</p><p>The Time Lord glanced over his shoulders. “What’s in there, eh? What’s coming out?”</p><p>------------</p><p>River took a set of jumper cables, running them from the console, to the metal lock on the door.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“The Pandorica is ready.” The Auton formerly known as Claudio announced, the Doctor’s back to the box.</p><p>“What?” The Doctor looked over, “You mean it’s open?”</p><p>“YOU HAVE BEEN SCANNED.” The Supreme Dalek announced, voice emanating from thin air. “ASSESSED. UNDERSTOOD. DOCTOR.”</p><p>The Time Lord slowly turned around, watching as the Supreme Dalek emerged from behind one of the stones, a Strategist and Scientist appearing at its sides.</p><p>The Doctor struggled as the Autons forced him to turn around properly, staring directly ahead at the Pandorica. “Scanned? By what? A box?”</p><p>“Your limits and capacities have been extrapolated.” A deep, synthesized voice explained, as a Cyber-Leader materialized, flanked by two standard Cybermen.</p><p>Another trio of blue lights appeared, rhino-like bipeds appearing out of the light. The Judoon. Cops for hire in the very worst way.</p><p>A violet glare hit the Doctor’s eyes, three short, stocky aliens with dome-like heads appearing out of the air.</p><p>“The Pandorica is ready!” A Sontaran Commander announced, two of his subordinates holding rifles.</p><p>The Doctor looked between the groups. “Ready for what?”</p><p>“READY FOR YOU.”</p><p>The light from the Pandorica died, and the Doctor took a breath in fear.</p><p>It was empty. Waiting for him.</p><p>That nameless demon soaked in a blood of countless civilizations…</p><p>Who else would it be other than the Doctor?</p><p>The Time Lord tried to dig his heels into the ground as the Autons forced him forward.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“No… no… NOOOO!” El screamed, as the intelligence finally smashed through.</p><p>Instantly, Sarah Jane’s neck twisted with a sickening snap.</p><p>The woman stayed upright for only a moment before she fell over.</p><p>“No!” El cried, as the intelligence retreated with a laugh. “No! Aunt Sarah!”</p><p>The only thing it wanted was to be cruel. It had been successful on that front.</p><p>------------</p><p>River joined two power conduits from the console together, the system sparking as the power flowed in a way it wasn’t meant to.</p><p>------------</p><p>Trios of every species, Silurians, Hoix… even a few Neverweres like the one in Hawkins watched as the Doctor was dragged forward towards the Pandorica, dragging his feet to try and fight.</p><p>Still, the Autons kept moving.</p><p>-----------</p><p>River lifted one of the panels open, fiddling with the innards, before twisting the door lever, as one of the hexagonal roundels exploded, sending glass and sparks across the room.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Daleks, the Cybermen, the Sontarans… all watched as the Doctor was pushed forward.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El cried, her mind feeling like it had been shredded open, as she leaned over Sarah Jane, desperately feeling for any sign of life.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Autons forced the Time Lord into the seat of the Pandorica, tightening clasps around his wrists, as metal claws clamped down over his shoulders, and around his torso.</p><p>The Sontaran Commander nodded in satisfaction as the Doctor was immobilized.</p><p>The countless enemies of the Doctor stood in his direct line of sight, looking upon him with nothing less than pure, undiluted hatred.</p><p>“You lot…” The Doctor whispered in horror. “Working together… an <em>Alliance.</em> How’s that possible?”</p><p>“THE CRACKS IN THE SKIN OF THE UNIVERSE.” The Dalek Supreme answered.</p><p>“All reality is threatened!” The Sontaran commander snarled.</p><p>“All universes will be deleted.” The Cyber-Leader stated.</p><p>The Doctor looked between them. “What… now you’ve come to me for help?”</p><p>“No!” The Sontaran Commander spat. <em>“We </em>will save the universe--from <em>you!”</em></p><p>“From me?” The Doctor repeated.</p><p>“All projections correlate. All evidence concurs.” The Cyber-Leader began. “The Doctor will destroy the universe.”</p><p>“No, no, you’ve got it wrong.” The Time Lord replied.</p><p>“The Pandorica was constructed to ensure the security of the Alliance.” The Cyber-Leader explained.</p><p>“A SCENARIO WAS DEVISED FROM THE MEMORIES OF YOUR COMPANION.” The Dalek Supreme outlined.</p><p>“A trap the Doctor could not resist.” The Sontaran Commander glared.</p><p>“THE CRACKS IN TIME ARE THE WORK OF THE DOCTOR--IT IS CONFIRMED!”</p><p>“No, not me, the TARDIS!” The Doctor denied. “The TARDIS! And I’m not in the TARDIS!”</p><p>“ONLY THE DOCTOR CAN PILOT THE TARDIS.”</p><p>“Please, listen to me.” The Doctor begged.</p><p>“YOU WILL BE PREVENTED!”</p><p>“Total Event Collapse, every sun will supernova, at every moment in history.” The Doctor shook. “The whole <em>universe </em>will never have existed… <em>please </em>listen to me!”</p><p>“Seal the Pandorica.” The Cyber-Leader ordered, gears beginning to engage as the prison did just that.</p><p>“No!” The Doctor screamed. “Please, listen to me! The TARDIS is exploding and I’m the only one who can stop it! LISTEN TO MEEEEEEE!”</p><p>The Pandorica closed.</p><p>------------</p><p>River pulled the doors open, freezing.</p><p>A rock wall, the remnants of a planet the TARDIS had landed inside, blocked her escape.</p><p>“I’m sorry, my love…” River whispered, turning back to the console.</p><p>The heart of the TARDIS, directly underneath the control systems, erupted into an enormous ball of flame.</p><p>------------</p><p>El wept over Sarah Jane’s body, shaking.</p><p>The girl looked up, but that only made the tears fall even faster.</p><p>One by one… the stars went out.</p><p>Silence fell across the universe.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0060"><h2>60. The Starless Universe</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El lay on the ground, shivering, crying. The universe had ended. The Autons had, for whatever reason, simply… keeled over, turning to stone.</p><p>El didn’t care. She was too focused on the fact that something had broken into her mind and made her use her powers to kill Sarah Jane.</p><p>She had no idea what to do. The TARDIS was exploding, a quick peek down into the underhenge revealed that the Doctor was gone, River was nowhere to be seen…</p><p>The situation was hopeless.</p><p>The girl was about to close her eyes, let the cold of the night take her, when something caught her attention.</p><p>A beeping. High-pitched and rapid, coming from her pocket.</p><p>El reached into her pocket for the culprit and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. The one her future self had given her.</p><p>El pressed the button, and, instantly, the tip lit up, something projecting across the way.</p><p><em>“Ah, El!” </em>A violet-tinted hologram of her older self appeared across the way. <em>“Listen, she’s not dead! Well, she </em>is <em>dead but it’s not the end of the world. Actually, it </em>is <em>the end of the world. Actually, it’s the end of the whole universe. But never mind that!” </em>The hologram continued before El could speak. <em>“You need to get dad out of the Pandorica.”</em></p><p>El spluttered. “He’s in the Pandorica?”</p><p><em>“Yes, yes, yes!” </em>The hologram replied in a rush. <em>“Those guys locked him up in there without realizing they were dooming themselves. Idiots.”</em></p><p>“But, how!?” El questioned.</p><p><em>“Oh, come on! Remember what I told you when I first gave you this thing?” </em>The message questioned in response. <em>“’There’s a door out there only this thing can open.’  The people who built the Pandorica hardened it against sonic tech knowing dad likes to use it, but that,” </em>The hologram gestured to the screwdriver, <em>“Has a built in override. I programmed it to activate and this message to play when it detected the Pandorica’s closing message.”</em></p><p>“Wait,” El rubbed her face, “You’re just a message? But you’re talking back.”</p><p><em>“Come on, El, use your head! I remember this conversation from your point of view, so I already know everything you’re going to say.” </em>The hologram rolled her eyes. <em>“But don’t worry about that. It’s very easy to use just point it and press the button. Good luck.”</em></p><p>The emitter went dark, and El blinked as the hologram vanished.</p><p>----------</p><p>El stood there, holding the buzzing screwdriver of her own, watching as the Pandorica slid open, the Doctor looking out with a look of extreme puzzlement.</p><p>“…How did you do that?” The Time Lord questioned, frozen in place.</p><p>El held up the sonic she got from her future self. “Had this.”</p><p>The Doctor got to his feet, slowly walking up to peer at the unfamiliar device. “Where’d you get that?”</p><p>“I got it from me.” El answered. “Me… from the future.”</p><p>“You from the future?” The Doctor repeated, bouncing on the tips of his toes. “You have a future, that’s nice.” The Time Lord looked at something across the way and pointed. “That’s not.”</p><p>The girl turned, looking at a Dalek made of stone. “Yeah, the Romans outside are stone too. What are they?”</p><p>“Afterimages.” The Doctor replied. “You know how the Weeping Angels turn into stone when they’re seen?” El nodded. “It’s technically them falling out of time while they’re in sight, before falling back in. It’s the same basic principle here.” The Time Lord flicked the Dalek’s eyestalk. “Whole species have been deleted from history; these are just the after-images. Fossils in time… echoes of the never-were.”</p><p>“The stars went out.” El swallowed, following the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Total Event Collapse, the whole universe didn’t just end. It never happened.”</p><p>“So…” El began shakily. “Why are we still here? What’s keeping us safe?”</p><p>“Nothing.” The Time Lord answered. “Eye of the storm, we’re just the last lights to go out. Wait,” Hw turned back to her, “If you’re down here… where’s Sarah Jane?”</p><p>El swallowed, tears prickling at her eyes again.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor knelt on the ground by the woman, sighing as he looked her body over. “Oh, Sarah… I’m sorry.”</p><p>“I… I tried.” El cried. “I couldn’t stop it.”</p><p>“…I knew it was a mistake.” The Doctor shook his head. “Letting that giant shadow alien escape into space. Should’ve just sealed it on the other side, still,” The Time Lord looked up at the dead, black sky, the only celestial body up there being the moon. “It’s gone now. That’s something at least.”</p><p>“Can we fix it?” El asked. “Help her?”</p><p>“Yeah, probably, if we had the time.” The Doctor stood, stepping over the body. “Then again… it’s not like I’ll get another chance if things go pear-shaped and I can’t fix everything else. Right!” The Doctor clapped his hands. “We need to get her downstairs!”</p><p>------------</p><p>Sarah Jane’s body limply slumped in the Pandorica’s chair.</p><p>“So, there’s a plan.” El recognized, as the Doctor placed Sarah Jane’s arms into place.</p><p>“A little bit of a plan, yeah.” The Time Lord placed his hands on the woman’s temples, closing his eyes. “I’m leaving her a message when she wakes up, that way she knows what’s happening.” The Doctor’s eyes snapped back open, and he stepped away from the Pandorica, sonicing it shut with the screwdriver from El. “Nice screwdriver. Good taste, your future self.”</p><p>El frowned. “Why are you locking her inside?”</p><p>“The box is the ultimate prison, can’t even escape by dying.” The Doctor answered. “Contains a restoration field, that’ll keep her body from decaying to the point of uselessness. All it needs now is a sample of her living DNA and it can bring her back. Which it will get,” The Time Lord checked his watch, “In about 2000 years.”</p><p>“…two-<em>thousand</em>?” El repeated.</p><p>“Yep, but you and I, we’re taking a shortcut.” The Doctor procured River’s Vortex Manipulator, fastening it to his wrist. “Vortex Manipulator, cheap and nasty time travel. Ridiculously inaccurate, but, the universe is so tiny now that doesn’t matter anymore.”</p><p>“So, Earth’s fine?” El inquired.</p><p>“Mostly fine. Earth without stars.” The Doctor held out his arm. “Put your hand there.”</p><p>El was about to do so, stopping before she looked to the Pandorica. “Is she going to be fine?”</p><p>“Oh yeah, totally,” The Doctor tapped the sides. “Nothing in the universe can get in here… well… most nothing. Pretty much nothing. Almost nothing… good point. She needs someone to watch over it.”</p><p>“For two-thousand years? Who?” El questioned.</p><p>“Don’t have a spade, but your powers should come in handy, come on!” The Doctor held out his arm. “No time traveling, just a hop across the continent.”</p><p>“To where?”</p><p>“Cardiff.” The Doctor answered. “There’s someone there who I think who can help.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The sonic screwdriver buzzed as the Doctor pointed it at the ground, scanning. The device bleeped, before the Doctor’s senses went crazy.</p><p>Looking to El, he nodded.</p><p>The girl held her hand out, as twenty feet of dirt and debris pulled itself from the ground, falling nearby, as a man in a WWII trenchcoat was deposited on the side.</p><p>“Dad, he’s…” El looked to the Doctor, feeling absolutely nothing coming from the man. “He’s gone.”</p><p>The Doctor watched, not replying.</p><p>Before the man suddenly gasped loudly, drawing in a big gulp of air.</p><p>“AH!” The man gasped, looking around. “I’m out… I’m out!?” His eyes glided over to the Doctor, before his confused stare turned into a handsome, salacious grin. “Hello… Captain Jack Harkness.”</p><p>“Oh, for god’s sake.” The Doctor rolled his eyes, “Not even five seconds and he’s already flirting.”</p><p>“Sorry,” Jack got to his feet, looking at the Time Lord in confusion. “Been ‘round the block a few times. Do I know you?”</p><p>The Doctor held up the sonic screwdriver, pressing the button.</p><p>“No…” Jack gasped in awe, looking to the Time Lord. “No way… Doctor?”</p><p>“Yep!” The Time Lord bounced.</p><p>“Jesus Christ…” Jack muttered, looking the Time Lord over. “You look like a kid! I’m half worried I’ll get arrested being seen with you…”</p><p>The Doctor snorted.  “You look great too, Jack.”</p><p>The man flinched. “Yeah… got buried alive. Long story.” He glanced over at El. “Who’s this?”</p><p>“El.” The girl answered. “His daughter.”</p><p>The Time Agent stared at the Time Lord. “You didn’t…”</p><p>“Didn’t what?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“You didn’t tell me you finally hooked up with Martha!” The man answered, looking El up and down.</p><p>The Doctor spluttered. “I didn’t-! Does she look <em>anything </em>like Martha!?”</p><p>“Yeah, good point, so who’s is this?” Jack inquired.</p><p>The Doctor scowled. “You know about a woman named Terry Ives?”</p><p>Jack flinched. “Oof.” He turned to the girl. “So, El as in…”</p><p>“Eleven.” The girl finished.</p><p>“If it’s any help… I knew what was happening and tried to stop it.” Jack apologized.</p><p>“You knew…” El repeated with a furrowed brow. “How did you know?”</p><p>“Well, don’t go telling anyone this, but…” Jack lowered his voice conspiratorially. “I’m kind of a secret agent. Shh…”</p><p>The Doctor snorted. “Yeah, a secret agency that plasters its name on the vehicles, orders pizza under the name ‘Torchwood,’ and everybody knows where its headquarters are.”</p><p>“I said kind of.” Jack stated, brushing dirt off his face. “So, how’d you know I needed help? Who sent you?”</p><p>“Ah, well,” The Doctor threw an arm around Jack’s shoulders, “I didn’t come here to rescue you. Well, I technically did, but that’s only after another mess went down.”</p><p>Jack huffed sarcastically. “Thanks.”</p><p>“You’re welcome.” The Doctor smiled. “Anyway, see, I knew you were down there because <em>you </em>told me… you from the future. Who didn’t get out until…” The Time Lord checked his watch. “1901.”</p><p>Jack looked to the Doctor questioningly. “You’re <em>crossing </em>my timeline?”</p><p>“Relax, I know exactly what I’m doing.” The Doctor patted Jack on the shoulder. “And even if I didn’t… it doesn’t really matter now anyway.”</p><p>Jack frowned. “What are you talking about?”</p><p>“Look up.” El directed for the Doctor.</p><p>Jack glanced at her, before doing as he was told, freezing. “No… no way.” His eyes desperately searched the empty night sky for something, anything, only coming up with the moon. Arguably, that made it worse, as it verified he wasn’t staring at an overcast sky. “Doctor… please tell me I’m not seeing what I think I’m seeing.”</p><p>“Unfortunately,” The Time Lord sighed, “You are.”</p><p>Jack whipped to face the Doctor, “What did this?”</p><p>“…the TARDIS.”</p><p>The Time Agent stopped, looking incredulously at the Doctor. <em>“What?”</em></p><p>The Doctor rubbed his face. “The TARDIS was hijacked, led to the Eleventh of November 1983. And then, she exploded… Total Event Collapse.”</p><p>“No, no…” Jack vehemently shook his head. “That isn’t possible!”</p><p>“It happened.” The Doctor calmly retorted.</p><p>“No but think!” Jack replied. “If all it took to cause a Total Event Collapse was a single TARDIS exploding, it would’ve happened a thousand times over by now! The Time War <em>alone </em>would’ve done the job, but we’re still here.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head. “Tell me, what else do you think could’ve done the job?”</p><p>“…the Key to Time.” El spoke up, the heads of both snapping to her.</p><p>“The Key to Time…” Jack breathed. “You <em>found </em>it?”</p><p>“The Daleks did.” The Doctor replied. “I stopped them. Hid the key away in the TARDIS in a room even where I wouldn’t be able to use it.”</p><p>“You said the Key was more powerful than anything.” El recalled. “Could that have caused this to happen?”</p><p>“Possibly. Or, probably.” The Doctor considered. “Makes sense… the Key to Time doesn’t just control time, it <em>is </em>time. The fourth dimension of the universe in physical form. If it were destroyed…”</p><p>“And what if we fix it?” Jack asked. “Power like that… could I ever be able to die?”</p><p>“Die!?” El repeated.</p><p>“He has a… condition.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“I’d say it was more than that.” Jack shot back.</p><p>“He died. A long time ago, in a place far, far from here.” The Doctor exposited. “A friend of ours brought him back, but…”</p><p>“I’ve been shot, beaten, bruised, stabbed, irradiated, dropped off a cliff, run through by a javelin, trampled by a crowd…” Jack told the girl. “Every time, I come back. I always just… come back. No matter the damage.”</p><p>“Even if none of his cells were to survive,” The Doctor continued, “The component atoms would just knit themselves back together again. Which means,” He tapped El’s nose, “He’s just the guy we need.”</p><p>Jack looked to the Doctor inquiringly. “Need me for what?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Oh, Romans.” Jack looked at the stones. “Nice…” His eyes glided over to the stone Neverweres. “And Demogorgons too.”</p><p>El frowned. “You have a name for them?”</p><p>“Yeah, they’re sort of like the cockroaches of the far future.” Jack answered. “Always turning up in the least expected places exactly when you don’t want them to. They’re easy to deal with, just mindless pests after the controlling intelligence behind them got shot into a star by the Shadow Proclamation.” He turned to the Doctor. “What’re they doing here?”</p><p>“They were here for that.” The Doctor pointed to the cube in the center of the chamber. “The Pandorica.”</p><p>“The Pandorica…” Jack repeated in awe. “My mom and dad used to tell me the story about it when I was a kid… The Great Demon and the Good Wizard…” Jack looked to the Doctor. “What? Did they want whatever was inside?”</p><p>“Not quite.” The Doctor replied. “They wanted to trap me in it.”</p><p>“Oh…” Jack breathed. “I get it… But why do you need me?”</p><p>“Because,” The Doctor placed two hands on Jack’s shoulders, “There’s an old friend of mine that’s locked in there now. I need you to keep the Pandorica safe until we can find a pristine sample of DNA to use to revive her, got that?”</p><p>“But wait, I’ve been on Earth before.” Jack replied. “I lived through the eighteen hundreds, remember? And then there was the time we visited Cardiff with Rose.”</p><p>“Not anymore.” The Doctor replied. “Total event collapse means your homeworld never existed, and by extension, neither did you. You’ll be the only Jack Harkness in existence.”</p><p>“That simple?” Jack asked.</p><p>“Anything but simple, but it’s easy to understand, yes.” The Doctor replied. “Now, we’ve gotta go. Come along, El.”</p><p>“Doctor, wait!” Jack’s hand shot out, brushing only against empty air as the two vanished.</p><p>The man sighed, flopping back against the Pandorica. Grabbing a cyberweapon that one of the Cybermen had dropped, he prepared to be in it for the long haul.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0061"><h2>61. Pandora's Paradox</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><em>“…Legend says, wherever the Pandorica was taken, the Centurion would be there, guarding it.”</em> The display piece in the National Gallery played back, as Sarah Jane, and Sarah Jane watched.</p><p>The year was 1963, even though there was a flatscreen television with a playback going (the damage to time had been so great, that technology was a good fifty years ahead of what it should’ve been), and Sarah Jane had been found.</p><p>By a younger version of herself. A child, only about twelve years old. The young girl had been led to the museum by a series of mysterious messages, relentlessly pestering her Aunt Lavina to take her there.</p><p>Upon her arrival, she found a note on the Pandorica, telling her to stick around until dark. So, she did, and night had fallen. The younger version of Sarah Jane placed a hand on the prison, letting the older version be revived and set free.</p><p>Now, they were watching, a video of the history of the Pandorica playing back.</p><p>
  <em>“The Centurion appears as an iconic image in the artwork of many cultures, and there are several documented accounts of his appearances, and his several warnings to those who attempted to open the box. His last recorded appearance was during the London Blitz in 1941. The warehouse where the Pandorica was stored was destroyed by incendiary bombs, but the box itself was found the next morning, a safe distance from the blaze. There are eyewitness accounts of the night of the fire of a figure in an odd mixture of Roman and contemporary dress hauling the Pandorica out of the flames. Since then, there have been no sightings of the lone centurion. And many speculated that, if he ever existed, he perished in the fires of that night.”</em>
</p><p>“Doctor…” Sarah Jane, the older one, breathed. “What did you do?”</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” A voice across the massive hall proclaimed.</p><p>The child Sarah Jane jumped. “What’s that?”</p><p>Sarah Jane put herself in front of the child, watching as a stone Dalek, recovered from underneath Stonehenge, slid towards the Pandorica.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The alien snarled.</p><p>Lightning popped next to the two, as the Doctor and El materialized in a puff of smoke.</p><p>“Oh.” The Time Lord blinked, turning around. “Oh! Two of you!” He looked between the Sarah Janes. “Complicated.”</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The Dalek shouted, causing the Doctor to jump. The Dalek looked down at its gunstick as it failed to fire. “WEAPONS SYSTEMS RESTORING.”</p><p>“Right, come along, everyone!” The Doctor grabbed the older Sarah Jane’s hand, the woman grabbing her younger self, before he led them into cover.</p><p>“What are we doing!?” The older Sarah Jane demanded, as the Doctor ran into a mannequin.</p><p> Fumbling around, the Time Lord knocked the fez off the mannequin, holding it in his hand. “Well, we’re running into a dead end where I’m going to have a brilliant plan to get rid of that Dalek!”</p><p>“Dad?” El looked to the Time Lord.</p><p>“That Dalek’s restoring, but I don’t know if your powers are going to effect it. Better not chance it.”</p><p>“What’s going on?” A security guard questioned, shining a torch beam into the chamber.</p><p>“Get out of here!” The Doctor ordered. “Just go! Run!”</p><p>“DROP THE DEVICE!” The Dalek ordered.</p><p>“It’s not a weapon!” The Doctor said, assuming the creature was talking about the torch. “Go on, scan it! It’s not a weapon and you don’t have the power to waste!”</p><p>“SCANS INDICATE INTRUDER IS… ARMED!”</p><p>“Yep.” The security guard replied, suddenly hefting an enormous rifle up, firing two shots at the Dalek’s eyestalk.</p><p>“VISION IMPAIRED! VISION IMPAIRED!” The Dalek screeched, spinning around.</p><p>The Doctor poked his head out. “Jack!”</p><p>“Two thousand years.” The man began striding over, allowing the Cybergun to fall to his side. “You practically spin me around blindfolded, kick me in the back, and tell me to get to it, before vanishing into nothing.”</p><p>“Oh, uh…” The Doctor sheepishly blinked.</p><p>The man suddenly laughed, before pulling the Doctor into a bear hug. “Good to see you again, Doctor!” He beamed, before pressing a kiss that lasted a good ten seconds to the Time Lord’s lips. “That’s for getting me out of that grave.”</p><p>The Doctor spluttered and wiped his mouth. “Well, somebody didn’t get out much for two-thousand years.”</p><p>El eyebrows furrowed before she looked to the Doctor. “What was that he just did?”</p><p>“Oh, well, um…” The Time Lord scratched his head. “It was a kiss.”</p><p>“A… kiss?”</p><p>“Yeah, a smooch, a snog, sucking face.” The Doctor told the child. “You only do it with people you like. Unless you’re like him. He’s a harlot.”</p><p>“A harlot?” El questioned.</p><p>“A man or a woman who goes around kissing lots and lots of people for no reason. A harlot. AKA, Captain Jack Harkness.”</p><p>“I am not!” Jack denied, before he glanced over to the older woman. “And Sarah Jane Smith…” He smiled. “Big fan of your work.”</p><p>“Really?” The woman blushed. “Oh.”</p><p>“See?” The Doctor whispered to the two young girls. “Harlot…”</p><p>“Excuse me, bow-tie man,” The young Sarah Jane pulled on his arm, “I’m thirsty. Do you have anything to drink?”</p><p>“Oh, it’s all mouths today, isn’t it?” The Doctor grumbled, shoving the fez on her head.</p><p>The girl removed the hat, shoving it back to the Doctor.</p><p>“Wait…” The Doctor looked to the still-open Pandorica. “The light… the light from the Pandorica. It must’ve hit the Dalek.”</p><p>The creature began to whirr as it returned to activity.</p><p>“Out!” The Doctor quickly took a step back from the Dalek. “Out! Out!” He ushered the others forward, pulling along El and the other child. “So!” The Time Lord looked at Jack as he helped slam the door shut, the Doctor sonicing the door locked. “Two-thousand years, how was it?”</p><p>“You know me, kept out of trouble.” Jack answered.</p><p>“That’s a damn lie!” The Doctor glanced at the hat in his hands, quickly getting sick of carrying it around, before placing it on his head.</p><p>“What!?”</p><p>“You were in ancient Rome and just across the way from ancient Greece!” The Doctor replied. “I know how… ‘loving’ those two societies were!” He grabbed a mop, jamming it in the door handles. “Right, let’s keep going!” He dashed over to the stairs, “No, hang on!” He turned around, bending down to the young Sarah Jane’s level. “How’d you know to come here?”</p><p>The girl reached into her pockets, pulling out some sticky notes and a pamphlet, before handing it to the Doctor.</p><p>“Ahh, my handwriting.” The Doctor smiled, throwing the objects over his head. He ran over, grabbing a pamphlet out of a display case, before running over to a nearby desk for the sticky notes and pen. He tapped a series of commands into the Vortex Manipulator, vanishing.</p><p>The young Sarah Jane gasped. “How did he do that?”</p><p>The Doctor suddenly appeared back in the room, holding a large drink with a straw. “There you go, drink up.” He passed it off to her, walking up the steps.</p><p>“Where are we going?” El asked.</p><p>“The roof!” The Doctor answered.</p><p>Lighting cracked at the top of the steps, and all of them froze as the Doctor, clothes looking raggedy and the man himself looking haggard, appeared. He stared down at them, before tumbling down.</p><p>The Doctor ran over, scanning the future version of himself with the sonic.</p><p>“Dad…” El slowly approached. “It’s you. How can it be…?”</p><p>The Doctor didn’t respond, moving his other self’s head.</p><p>“Doctor,” Sarah Jane, the proper one, began. “Is that you?”</p><p>“…It’s me.” The Doctor confirmed. “Me from the future.”</p><p>The older Doctor’s eyes snapped open, locking on himself, pulling himself closer. The older Doctor whispered something into his younger self’s ears, before flopping back on the ground.</p><p>“Doctor… that can’t be you.” Jack swallowed. “You’d regenerate.”</p><p>“…not always.” The Doctor replied, as he shot to his feet. “Right, I’ve got about twelve minutes, good!”</p><p>“How is that good!?” El demanded.</p><p>“Oh, you can do loads in twelve minutes.” The Doctor replied. “Suck a mint, buy a sledge, have a fast bath. Come on!” He snapped his fingers. “The roof!”</p><p>“W-Well we can’t just leave you here!” Sarah Jane replied.</p><p>“Oh good, someone other than me is finally taking charge.” The Doctor walked back down to her level. “So, tell me, have you got a plan to deal with the sudden vanishing act of your younger self?”</p><p>The other three suddenly whipped around, seeing only the cup lying on the ground.</p><p>“Where’d she go?” El asked.</p><p>Jack ran down to the bottom. “Sarah! Sarah Jane Smith!” He called, receiving nothing in response.</p><p>“There is no Sarah Jane. There never was.” The Doctor took a couple of steps down. “History is still collapsing. She was the youngest, she vanished first.”</p><p>“But, how can I still be here?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“You’re a time remnant. We all are.” The Doctor answered. “The last vestiges of an altered timeline hanging on by a thread in the eye of the storm, and that eye is shrinking! If we don’t do something <em>now </em>the whole of the universe will have never happened, just dying is the result! Now, come on!”  He shouted, running off into the museum.</p><p>Jack looked down to the Doctor’s body, pulling off his coat. He laid it gently over the Time Lord’s body, sighing.</p><p>“He can’t die…” El whispered. “He can’t. I won’t let it happen.”</p><p>“COME ON!” The Doctor bellowed. “MOVE IT!”</p><p>The three shook their heads but sprinted up the stairs to catch up.</p><p>Unbeknownst to them, however, there was still another danger.</p><p>“…RESTORE!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0062"><h2>62. Hi Honey, I'm Home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor pushed the hatch up, climbing out onto the roof.</p><p>El poked her head out after, frowning. “It’s day.”</p><p>“We weren’t in there for <em>that </em>long.” Jack commented, as they all got onto the roof.</p><p>“No, we weren’t.” The Doctor confirmed. “But I told you before, time is shrinking. Doesn’t anybody listen to me?”</p><p>“I listen.” El boasted proudly.</p><p>“And for that,” The Doctor took the fez off, placing it on El’s head. “You get to keep this. Now, the universe is collapsing, we don’t have much time left!” He jumped onto a pillar with a satellite dish.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“Looking for the TARDIS.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“But it exploded,” Jack recalled.</p><p>“Not exploded, explod<em>ing</em>.” The Doctor corrected, pulling the dish off.</p><p>“But… why would she do that?” El asked. “How?”</p><p>“Good question, for another day.” The Doctor replied. “Question now is; Total Event Collapse, every single star in existence was never born, not a single one, so what, the <em>hell</em>-“ He turned, pointing to the sky. “Is that? …Like I said, I’m looking for the exploding TARDIS.”</p><p>Sarah Jane held up a finger. “That’s the sun.”</p><p>“Oh yeah?” The Doctor replied. “Well, here’s the sound that sun is making, right now.”</p><p>The Doctor held up the dish, sonicing it, and they all froze, as a metallic, wheezing scraping filled the air.</p><p>El covered her mouth in shock, as she could feel the TARDIS’s agony radiating from the star.</p><p>“That’s my TARDIS burning up.” The Doctor swallowed. “That’s what’s been keeping Earth warm.”</p><p>Jack frowned. “Doctor, there’s something else. A woman.”</p><p>Sarah Jane shook her head. “I don’t hear anything.”</p><p>Jack pointed to his ear. “I know an attractive voice when I hear it.”</p><p>The Doctor flicked the screwdriver open, boosting the volume.</p><p>“I’m sorry, my love… I’m sorry, my love… I’m sorry, my love…”</p><p>“River.” El recognized. “What’s wrong with her?”</p><p>“A recording, maybe?” Sarah Jane suggested.</p><p>“No…” The Doctor’s arm fell. “Oh, she must’ve still been inside when the engines exploded so the TARDIS put the control room into a time loop to save her! She is right at the heart of the explosion…”</p><p>------------</p><p>River joined two power conduits from the console together, the system sparking as the power flowed in a way it wasn’t meant to.</p><p>The woman lifted one of the panels open, fiddling with the innards, before twisting the door lever, as one of the hexagonal roundels exploded, sending glass and sparks across the room.</p><p>She ran down the steps to the door.</p><p>She pulled the doors open, freezing.</p><p>A rock wall, the remnants of a planet the TARDIS had landed inside, blocked her escape.</p><p>“I’m sorry, my love…” River whispered, turning back to the console.</p><p>The heart of the TARDIS, directly underneath the control systems, erupted into an enormous ball of flame.</p><p>------------</p><p>River joined two power conduits from the console together, the system sparking as the power flowed in a way it wasn’t meant to.</p><p>The woman lifted one of the panels open, fiddling with the innards, before twisting the door lever, as one of the hexagonal roundels exploded, sending glass and sparks across the room.</p><p>She ran down the steps to the door.</p><p>She pulled the doors open, freezing.</p><p>A rock wall, the remnants of a planet the TARDIS had landed inside, blocked her escape.</p><p>“I’m sorry, my love…” River whispered, turning back to the console.</p><p>The heart of the TARDIS, directly underneath the control systems, erupted into an enormous ball of flame.</p><p>------------</p><p>River joined two power conduits from the console together, the system sparking as the power flowed in a way it wasn’t meant to.</p><p>The woman lifted one of the panels open, fiddling with the innards, before twisting the door lever, as one of the hexagonal roundels exploded, sending glass and sparks across the room.</p><p>She ran down the steps to the door.</p><p>River stopped, as the Doctor leaned against the painted wood.</p><p>“Hi honey, I’m home.” The Doctor smiled slightly.</p><p>River checked her wrist strap, a hand on her hip. “And what sort of time do you call this?” She demanded, as the heart of the TARDIS erupted into fire.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Ozone popped at the Doctor reappeared, River and the Doctor standing arm in arm.</p><p>“El,” River recognized, “And Sarah Jane.” She glanced at the time agent, grinning. “And Captain Jack Harkness. Hello. Doctor River Song.”</p><p>“Nice to meet you, Doctor River Song.” Jack returned the grin, as their eyes practically made love to each other.</p><p>“Oh, god, it’s like having two of them.” The Time Lord grumbled.</p><p>“Right then,” River clapped her hands, “I have questions. But number one is this: What in the name of sanity have you put on that girl’s head?”</p><p>“It’s a fez.” El answered for the Doctor, hand going up to the hat. “I wear a fez now.”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled, smiling. “Fezzes are cool.”</p><p>River let out a suffering sigh.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The stone Dalek from before shouted, hovering up to the roof from down below.</p><p>“Go!” The Doctor shouted. “Run, run, run!” He grabbed the dish, using it as a shield to block the Dalek’s weakened blasts, as the others climbed down the hatch.</p><p>Once inside, the Doctor stood at the top of the ladder, sonicing the hatch shut.</p><p>“Doctor,” River kept her gun trained on the hatch, as the Dalek banged on it from outside. “We need to move.”</p><p>“Shh.” The Doctor hopped down. “It’s going around, finding another way in. It needs to restore its power before it can attack again. Now, that means we’ve got about,” He checked his watch, “Four and a half minutes before it’s at lethal capacity.”</p><p>“How do you know that?” Jack questioned as the Doctor took the lead down the stairs.</p><p>“Because, that’s when it kills me.”</p><p>“Kill you!?” River’s head snapped over to the Doctor.</p><p>“Never mind that!” The Doctor shot back. “How can that Dalek even exist?” He asked, taking the lead down the corridor. “It was erased from history, it never existed at all! And it came back, how?”</p><p>“You mentioned something about the light.” Jack recalled.</p><p>“From the Pandorica.” El finished.</p><p>“It’s not a light, it’s a restoration field.” The Doctor retorted. “But never mind, light works. It’s what brought Sarah Jane back, but how can it bring back a Dalek when the Daleks never existed!?”</p><p>“…Okay.” El shrugged. “Tell us how.”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her, before he continued moving.  “When the TARDIS exploded, it caused a Total Event Collapse, time explosion. That explosion destroyed every atom in the universe, except-“</p><p>“The ones inside the Pandorica.” Sarah Jane recognized.</p><p>“Yes. Now, each one of those atoms contains an imprint.” The Doctor continued. “Like a microscopic snapshot of the universe as it was. In theory, you could extrapolate a whole new universe from just one, and we’ve got the bumper family pack!”</p><p>“Is that… possible?” El asked.</p><p>“Possible, yes.” The Doctor replied. “I’d say that Dalek was proof enough. Skaro never existed in this collapsing timeline, but it did in the original. The restoration field from the Pandorica hit the Dalek, ergo, it brought it back. Not just restoring its life, restoring its history. And that, is how we’re going to do it.”</p><p>“Doc… You can’t seriously be suggesting we bring back a whole universe with a… nightlight!” Jack stated.</p><p>“Yes, he’s right!” River agreed, stomping behind the Time Lord. “It’s ridiculous. That light was able to <em>barely </em>restore <em>one </em>Dalek! If it can’t even restore a single life form, how’s it going to restore the <em>whole of reality!?”</em></p><p>“What if we give it a moment of infinite power?” The Doctor suggested in response. “What if we can transmit the light from the Pandorica so it covers all of space and time at once?”</p><p>“Well that would be lovely, dear,” River smacked her lips, “but we can’t--because it’s completely impossible!”</p><p>“Ah, no, you see, it’s not.” The Doctor replied. “It’s only almost completely impossible. One spark is all we need.”</p><p>“For what?” Jack asked.</p><p>The Time Lord smiled. “Big Bang Two. Now, listen-“</p><p>A loud, mechanical zap cut the Doctor off, as his skeleton began to glow through his body. He fell to the ground, as the others began to panic.</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The Dalek screeched, having found its way inside. “EXTERMINATE!”</p><p>“Back!” Jack ordered, pushing El and Sarah Jane into cover. “River!” He shouted to the woman over the Doctor’s body. “Back, now!”</p><p>“EXTERMINATE!” The Dalek screeched again.</p><p>Jack peeked back out of cover, firing two shots from his Webley revolver at the Dalek.</p><p>Though Jack didn’t hit the Dalek’s eyestalk, it powered down, being so weak not even its normal external defenses could protect it. He holstered the weapon, as El and Sarah Jane went back over to the Doctor.</p><p>“Doctor,” River addressed the Time Lord in anguish, who was spasming on the floor, in great pain. “Doctor, it’s me, it’s River. Can you hear me?”</p><p>The Doctor’s hand flew down to his wrist, and with two beeps, the Vortex Manipulator activated, carrying him away in a blast of lightning.</p><p>“Where did he go?” River looked around. “Damn it, he could be anywhere.”</p><p>“…downstairs.” El sniffled, looking at the empty space. “Twelve minutes ago.”</p><p>“Show me.” The woman demanded, turning to the girl.</p><p>“River…” Sarah Jane swallowed. “He died down there.”</p><p>“SYSTEMS RESTORING!” The Dalek proclaimed.</p><p>“Damn it!” Jack hissed. “I thought I took that thing out already!”</p><p>“YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!”</p><p>River stared hatefully at the creature. “You lot go to the Doctor. I’ll be right with you.”</p><p>The other three looked between each other, before they ran off, Jack covering their backs, as they went back to the stairs.</p><p>“YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!” The Dalek shouted, inching ever closer.</p><p>“Not yet.” River retorted, taking her blaster from its holster. “Your systems are still restoring, which means your shield density is compromised. One alpha meson blast to your eyestalk would kill you stone dead.”</p><p>“RECORDS INDICATE YOU WILL SHOW MERCY.” The Dalek replied, coming to a stop. “YOU ARE AN ASSOCIATE OF THE DOCTOR’S.”</p><p>River snarled. “I’m River Song.” She replied, leveling the blaster at the Dalek. “Check your records again.”</p><p>The Dalek inched back slightly as it reviewed the information. The one being in all the universe that succeeded where the Daleks had failed time and time again. “…MERCY.”</p><p>“Say it again.” River ordered.</p><p>“MERCY.”</p><p>“One last time.”</p><p>“MERCY!” The Dalek begged.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The trio sprinted to the steps where they had seen the Doctor keel over, and they collectively froze.</p><p>“He’s gone.” El looked to Jack’s discarded coat on the floor.</p><p>“Ellie, kid, if there’s one thing you need to know about your dear old dad,” Jack began, picking the coat up off the floor, “Is that he’s a lying liar who lies.”</p><p>“Rule one.” River stated, coming towards them. “The Doctor lies.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked around. “What happened to that Dalek?”</p><p>“It died.” River stated, shaking with anger as she took the lead.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Doctor!” Jack shouted, as the four of them ran back into the large hall containing the Pandorica.</p><p>“Dad!” El ran up to it quickly, the Time Lord lying slumped over in the chair.</p><p>“Why would he tell us he was dead?” Jack questioned.</p><p>“…we were the diversion.” Sarah Jane realized. “As long as the Dalek was chasing us, he could work down here.”</p><p>“Doctor,” River examined him, “Can you hear me? What were you doing?”</p><p>The light from the exploding TARDIS shifted from a warm orange to a hostile red, as Jack looked to the source. “What’s happening?”</p><p>“The collapse is speeding up.” River explained. “Look around.” She ordered, as El held onto the Doctor’s limp hand.</p><p>“The exhibits,” Sarah Jane realized, looking at the totally empty displays. “They’re gone.”</p><p>“History’s been erased… not long for us now.” River turned back to the Time Lord. “Doctor, time is running out. What were you doing? Doctor?”</p><p>The Doctor forced himself to look up, his breathing becoming labored as he looked to El, hand tightening around hers, before his eyes glided over to River. “Big… Bang… Two…”</p><p>“Big Bang Two?” El repeated, swallowing as she looked at the Doctor. “Dad… what does that mean?”</p><p>“The Big Bang… the creation of the universe.” Jack explained.</p><p>“Big Bang Two, that’s the one that brings us back?” Sarah Jane theorized. “Doctor, is that what you mean?”</p><p>The Doctor forced himself to nod slowly.</p><p>“Oh…” River breathed in realization.</p><p>“River, what?” El asked, keeping herself from crying in front of all of them.</p><p>“The TARDIS is still exploding.” River answered. “The Key to Time was already destroyed, but the TARDIS herself exists outside of time… Exploding at every single point in time and space at once. If you threw the Pandorica into the heart of the fire…”</p><p>“’Let there be light…’” Jack breathed in realization himself. “That light from the Pandorica, the restoration field… it would shine at every point in space and time.”</p><p>“A second Big Bang…” Sarah Jane finished in awe. “Would that work?”</p><p>“A restoration field powered by an exploding TARDIS…” River turned back to the Doctor. “It might even work.” She took the Doctor’s sonic screwdriver, sonicing the Vortex Manipulator on his wrist, a series of wires running from it to the Pandorica. “He’s wired the Vortex Manipulator into the rest of the box.”</p><p>“Why?” El asked.</p><p>“So he can take it with him.” River answered, as tears began to fall from El’s eyes. “He’s going to fly the Pandorica into the heart of the explosion.”</p><p>Big Bang Two, the universe restarted… at the cost of the Doctor.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0063"><h2>63. The Big Bang</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The hellish red glow from the TARDIS filled the National Museum, as Jack, Sarah Jane, and El stood nearby, waiting for the end.</p><p>“…you alright, El?” Sarah Jane turned to her.</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“Are you lying?”</p><p>El shook slightly, as the waterworks began. “Yes.”</p><p>“El,” River called to her, “The Doctor wants to talk to you.”</p><p>The girl nodded, taking some shaky steps up to the box, as the others looked on.</p><p>“…It’s been so long since I last saw him.” Jack quietly remarked as El stepped up to the entrance. “And there he goes again… Only thing I don’t like is I won’t get to say a proper goodbye.”</p><p>“Don’t say goodbye.” River quietly told him. “He hates goodbyes.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the woman. “Big Bang Two… what will happen to us?”</p><p>“We all go back.” River answered. “To where we ought to be in time and space. This never happens, and we have no memory of it.”</p><p>“River… tell me he comes back too.”</p><p>The woman remained silent, looking downcast.</p><p>------------</p><p>El took a shaky breath as she stepped to the entrance of the Pandorica, placing a small hand on the Doctor’s larger one.</p><p>The Time Lord’s grip tightened slightly as he registered her presence, looking up.</p><p>“El… Jane Ives… Test Subject Eleven…” The Doctor began weakly. “The girl who ran away with a strange man in a box she didn’t really know anything about… was it worth it?”</p><p>“Yes.” El answered, sniffling. “Worth it.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed and smiled sadly. “I’m glad… I really didn’t fancy leaving you on Earth. Truth is… I’d already started counting myself as your dad. Moment I laid eyes on you…”</p><p>El wiped her face slightly. “I’m glad it’s you.”</p><p>“I’m glad you’re glad.” The Doctor let out a breath. “But… you have a real set of parents. A mum and a dad. Or, you did… until the crack took them too.”</p><p>“I don’t…” El sniffled. “I can’t remember them.”</p><p>“You wouldn’t… But that’s okay, it’s not your fault.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>The room shuddered like an earthquake hit the building.</p><p>“Doctor!” River shouted. “It’s speeding up!”</p><p>“El, listen to me…” The Doctor began. “There’s going to be a very big bang… Big Bang Two. Think about them. Think about having a mother, and a father, and friends, and when you wake up… they’ll be there.”</p><p>“How?” El questioned.</p><p>“I told you before… you’re a very special little girl.” The Doctor replied. “Your powers opened the crack in Hawkins… they can reach across time and space. Trust me, just think about them, and they’ll be there.” He kissed her on the forehead, motioning for the girl to step back.</p><p>“You won’t.” El cried.</p><p>The Doctor smiled sadly, looking down. “You’ll have human parents… you won’t need a moron in a bow tie who keeps risking your life every other day.” He threw his head back, allowing the Pandorica’s restraints to clamp down. “Ha… look at that. A tear? For me? Guess what?”</p><p>“What?” El asked in response.</p><p>The Doctor grinned as the box sealed shut. “Gotcha.”</p><p>The etchings on the Pandorica began to glow green, as the box began to float.</p><p>“BACK!” River shouted, running to pull El away from the box. “GET BACK!”</p><p>Lightning sparked off the sides of the Pandorica as the four dove into cover, watching as the box shot up like a rocket, smashing clear through the skylight.</p><p>River’s communicator beeped, and she looked down at it in surprise, sniffling herself. “It’s from the Doctor…”</p><p>“What does it say?” El asked, staring at the broken roof, watching as the Pandorica became just a dot in the sky, and then nothing at all.</p><p>“Is says…” River swallowed. “Geronimo.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor breathed heavily, the Pandorica throwing him around as it tore through the vacuum of space.</p><p>The prison built to hold him smashed through an asteroid, undeterred, as it rocketed towards the enormous ball of fire that had been the TARDIS.</p><p>The Pandorica dove into the surface of the blaze, and the universe went white.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes snapped open as he sat up, finding himself on the floor of the TARDIS console room.</p><p>“Oh!” The Doctor looked around in surprise. “I survived. Brilliant… Love it when I do that… Legs.” He twiddled the limbs.  “Bow tie,” His hand shot to the garment, “Cool. Fez,” His hand shot up, “Gave that to El.”</p><p>“Now, the beach!” A voice shouted from the console, “The beach is the best! Automated sand!”</p><p>The Doctor’s head slowly turned, finding himself and El standing at the console. “Automated?” The girl repeated, wearing sunglasses and a bathing suit.</p><p>“Self-cleaning, self-repairing, self-everything!”</p><p>The Doctor looked on brow furrowed. “No, hang on… that’s last week. When El and I went to Space Florida. I’m rewinding… the rest of my time stream unraveling.”</p><p>Something glowed to his right, a massive crack appearing in the wall of the console room.</p><p>“Closing.” The Doctor finished. “Hello universe… goodbye Doctor.” He whipped back over to the console. “El?”</p><p>The girl spun around, looking in his direction. Her eyes darted around in confusion, evidently not spotting the Doctor.</p><p>Time suddenly snapped around the Doctor, events playing out in his mind in reverse, before he suddenly reappeared, standing  in the street of Aickman road.</p><p>The Doctor spun around, finding El walk up to the window of a shop. “Ah, three weeks ago, she put the advert in the window. El!”</p><p>The girl stopped as she moved to pet a cat, looking in the Doctor’s direction in confusion, before going on her way.</p><p>“Ah, she can hear me. But if she can hear me…” The Doctor looked to the ground, at the glowing fissure about to swallow him.</p><p>The events of the past few months rewound through the Doctor’s head, going back, back, all the way back until-</p><p>The Time Lord found himself leaning on a tree stump.</p><p>“Alright everyone, behave!” The past Doctor ordered. “And do not let that girl open her eyes, under any circumstances. And keep watching the forest, stop those angels from advancing. River, gonna need your computer!” He said to the woman, running off to join her.</p><p>The Doctor waited for the past him to walk over, before he approached El.</p><p>The girl sat there, eyes closed, listening. The Doctor’s two large hands grasped her own smaller ones, the twiddling of her thumbs ceasing.</p><p>“El…” The Doctor quietly said to her, so low it was almost a whisper. “You need to start trusting me, it’s never been more important.”</p><p>“Trust you already.” El replied.</p><p>The Doctor smiled at that.</p><p>“I’m glad.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Doctor… said the crack was from Hawkins. How?”</p><p>“I don’t know yet, but I’m working that out.” He told her, glancing over to the past version of himself fiddling with the sonic screwdriver and the scanner. “Now, listen… Remember what I told you when I picked you up in Hawkins?”</p><p>“…remember what?”</p><p>“No, that’s not…” The Doctor replied, anguished. The first rule of monster hunting; watch everything. If  something looked out of place, it probably was.</p><p>Hopefully… there would be enough things out of place in whatever new universe El woke up in. Then again, he didn’t need her to remember the rule. Just remember that the rule existed. Hopefully, the naturally curious child would spot the thread and pull.</p><p>“That’s not important. What is important is you <em>remember</em>.” He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.</p><p>“Doctor.” She stopped him before he could run away. “River… she said you were my dad.”</p><p>Oh… that wasn’t like River, to be so careless with spoilers. “Did she?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>“Yeah, but… she’s from the future… does that mean you’ll be my dad one day?”</p><p>The Doctor became choked up. He always wondered what caused El to start calling him dad all of a sudden. And then it hit him… if this plan of his went wrong, if she couldn’t remember… he’d never get to see her again. Never get to see her grow into the great woman he was sure she would become. Never again… never again.</p><p>“El…” The Doctor breathed. “Nothing in this universe could ever make me happier.”</p><p>And then, the Doctor was gone.</p><p>He found himself rewinding, back, back, and back, before he found himself in the corridors of the Hawkins Lab.</p><p>He looked around, at the facility still obviously active, but not in the control of UNIT.</p><p>“This must be…” The Doctor looked around, to the end of the hall, and the door broken off its hinges. “The night she escaped.” The Time Lord followed his senses out of the lab, winding effortlessly past the groups of people that couldn’t see him.</p><p>The Doctor found himself following El’s scent about five miles into the woods, before he stopped.</p><p>She was laying there, on the ground, fast asleep. Opening the crack and then fleeing must’ve been a much bigger drain on her powers, big enough to cause her to fall unconscious.</p><p>“Oh, El…” The Doctor breathed, kneeling down to pick her up. “C’mere, you…”</p><p>With his little girl sleeping in his arms, the Doctor walked through the woods, to a small cabin not far away. The place was abandoned, no sign of anyone having lived there in a very long time…</p><p>It would do, for tonight.</p><p>The Time Lord reached out telepathically, opening the door, before looking around.</p><p>“Oof… hope you’re not allergic to dust.” He whispered, carrying her into a small bedroom nearby. The mattress was old, worn. Sonicing it quickly to kill any bedbugs that might’ve been living inside, he gently laid her down.</p><p>Whoever owned the place seemed to only be using it to store junk they didn’t want in their main house, so, with a little bit of searching, the Doctor was able to find an old blanket, laying it over El.</p><p>The girl unconsciously curled up, as the Doctor pulled up a rickety wooden chair from the kitchen, sitting down in it.</p><p>“It’s funny…” The Doctor looked ahead. “I thought if you could hear me, maybe I could find a way to hang on, somehow… Silly me.” The Time Lord sighed. “Silly old Doctor…”</p><p>Something like thunder distantly rumbled, the room glowing slightly as the Doctor leaned closer to El.</p><p>“When you wake up,” The Doctor began, stroking her buzzcut hair. “Your mum and dad will be out there, somewhere, maybe you can find them.  You won’t even remember me… well, maybe you’ll remember some. An imaginary friend you dreamt up to help get you through the woods… I’ll just be a story in your head.” The Time Lord smiled slightly. “But that’s okay. We’re all stories in the end. Just make it a good one, eh? Cause it was you know.”</p><p>The Doctor flopped back, in the chair. “It was the best… A daft old man who stole a magic box with his granddaughter and ran away…” He looked over to her. “Did I ever tell you I stole it? Well, I borrowed her. I was always going to give the TARDIS back. Oh… that box, El. You’ll dream about that box… I hope you’ll dream about that box. It’ll never leave you. Big and little at the same time. Brand new and ancient. And the bluest blue that ever was…”</p><p>Thunder rumbled as the crack began to glow in the wall.</p><p>“And the times we had. Would’ve had.” The Doctor amended, as a teardrop fell from his eye. “Never had… In your dreams, they’ll still be there… I wonder who you’ll wind up with.” He spoke aloud. “Certainly not Will. The dream world never happened now… Regardless, when you find them… just make sure my chin doesn’t look too big on the page, yeah? The Doctor and Eleven… Eleven Squared… The Eleventh Hour…” The Time Lord laughed to himself. “I think you’ll have something special there.”</p><p>Thunder cracked again, the crack glowing wider as the Doctor turned to it.</p><p>“The cracks are closing…” The Doctor explained. “But they won’t close properly until I’m on the other side.” His eyes fell from the wall. “I don’t belong in this universe anymore.” The Doctor sniffed, getting to his feet. “I think I’ll skip the rest of the rewind. I hate repeats.” The Time Lord fought back tears as he pressed his lips to El’s forehead. “Live well… Be kind… bye-bye, El.”</p><p>The Time Lord straightened his bow tie as he stepped back into the crack, the glowing fissure sealing shut behind him, the wall returning to normal shortly after.</p><p>El stirred, looking around with open eyes. She would’ve panicked, being in an unfamiliar room without remembering the journey there.</p><p>At the moment, she had not the energy to care.</p><p>Her eyes drifted shut as she laid back down, stars looming in the night sky once more.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0064"><h2>64. I Remember You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Hawkins, Indiana, 1984</em>
</p><p>In the living room of the Byers household, there stood a group, armed and ready to defend themselves. This group was comprised of Jim Hopper, Joyce Byers, her son Jonathan, Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrington, Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, and Max Mayfield.</p><p>This particular group of people was <em>not </em>having a good day.</p><p>Creatures from the Upside Down, adolescent Demogorgons known as Demodogs, were invading Hawkins, the army of the intelligence on the other side, what they had termed the Mind Flayer. And though the army hadn’t attacked anyone else besides the lab personnel, it wouldn’t be long before the Mind Flayer came through in full.</p><p>To make things even worse, it had possessed Will. The boy was now nothing more than a puppet, a drone for it. And it had used Will to figure out where they were.</p><p>Now, the group was waiting, weapons trained on the windows and doors, waiting for the enemy to come.</p><p>The things outside banged and screeched, before one of them suddenly went flying through the window, flopping around, dead.</p><p>“Holy shit.” Dustin breathed, as Hopper kept the gun pointed at the creature.</p><p>Max swallowed. “Is it dead?”</p><p>Hopper slowly reached out, kicking it. The man allowed himself to relax slightly, before the door suddenly creaked, and they all whipped around towards it.</p><p>The deadbolt twisted by itself and the chain came undone, before the door was pushed open from the outside.</p><p>They all watched, shocked, as (in what only could be described as punk clothing) El came walking in.</p><p>Her eyes glided over all of them, before they locked on Mike, and she looked like she was ready to cry.</p><p>Until, that is, she spotted something out of the corner of them.</p><p>“Eleven.” Mike tried to approach.</p><p>Focusing on the object she’d spotted, she pushed past him, leaving the boy terribly confused, and more than a little heartbroken.</p><p>“Is that?” Max whispered to Lucas, who just nodded.</p><p>“What the hell is this?” Hopper questioned, as El went to a bookshelf nearby. “Where have you been?”</p><p>The girl didn’t respond, as she reached out for a book on the shelf.</p><p>“Eleven.” Hopper addressed, but no response came yet again. “Eleven!”</p><p>“Shut up.” The girl replied, holding the book in her hands. It was a blue book, old and worn in a way that meant it had been opened too many times to count, with a series of squares carved into both sides of the cover.</p><p>“El…” Mike tried to approach.</p><p>“I said shut up!” She shouted, breathing heavily as she flipped through the book, doing as her instincts told her to do. “Empty. Where did you get this?” She demanded of Joyce.</p><p>“Um, well…” The woman spluttered. “I don’t know… I don’t remember that. Maybe Will picked it up somewhere?”</p><p>“No… no…” El shook her head, looking around. Her eyes focused on the kitchen window, as she saw a woman with big, curly hair walk past, winking.</p><p>“What,” Hopper demanded, “Are you doing?”</p><p>“Quiet, quiet…” El ordered, staring down at the book.</p><p>“Sweetie…” Joyce looked to the girl. “You’re crying.”</p><p>“Sweetie.” El whipped to Joyce. “What did you just call me? Sweetie? Sweetie…” She recalled as a teardrop fell onto the book. She’d forgotten something, something colossally important.</p><p>Trouble is, forgetting… because you forgot something, you couldn’t remember what it was you forgot.</p><p><em>‘Hello, Sweetie…’ </em>El remembered hearing in her voice.</p><p>“The woman who left this,” El held the book up. “Did any of you see her?”</p><p>The others blinked in confusion.</p><p>“ANYONE!?” El bellowed.</p><p>“N-no!” Nancy spluttered. “How do you know it was a woman?”</p><p>“Kid,” Hopper stepped forward slowly, “<em>What</em> is going on?”</p><p>Max glanced to Lucas. “I think she needs a doctor.”</p><p>El’s eyes snapped to Max. “You! What did you just say!”</p><p>“Um, uh-“ Max stammered. “I said I think you need a doctor.”</p><p>
  <em>…Doctor.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>…Doctor.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Hello. I’m the Doctor.</em>
</p><p>El’s eyes shot open fully as she drew a breath. “I remember… I remember…” She breathed. Months of living on board a bigger on the inside spaceship with a bow-tie clad alien who called himself the Doctor. Something had happened, something terrible… and instead of coming aboard the TARDIS, El was found in the woods. She’d defeated the Demogorgon but was unable to close the gate… Something had caused her to never meet the Doctor.</p><p>And yet, she remembered him.</p><p>El looked to her wrist, a key-shaped tattoo having suddenly covered the one from the lab.</p><p>“El…” Mike tried to place a hand on her shoulder, the girl shrugging it off. “What’s going on?”</p><p>“…I had an imaginary friend.” El recalled, looking down at the book. The splitting image of the TARDIS.</p><p>Hopper rolled his eyes, “Kid, there will be time for that later-“</p><p>“No!” El snapped. “Now! Shut up, listen.” El breathed to continue. “Someone important… very important.” She recalled the man in the bow tie and braces, giant chin and flop of hair. “Except… he wasn’t imaginary. He was real. He helped me in the forest… he saved me… showed me so, so much…”</p><p>They all looked to each other in confusion, even those who’d just met her, not having heard her speak so much, and so well.</p><p>“I remember you!” El shouted. “You told me I could bring others back; I can bring you back too! Doctor, I remember you, now get back here!”</p><p>The furniture as well as the shattered glass on the floor began to rattle, the drawings of the tunnel network under Hawking flapping slightly.</p><p>“I remembered you, just like you said you would. A story in my head…” El recalled.</p><p>Wind began to kick up indoors, curtains billowing in directions that all implied the wind was coming from the centre of the room. Those who were standing close to that spot found the sudden, uncontrollable compulsion to <em>move</em> away from the spot as fast as they could.</p><p>“That’s why you told me.” El pieced together. “You told me that story so I’d know how to bring you back. The Old Man and the Police Box.”</p><p>An ancient, wheezing grinding noise began to emanate from the centre of the room.</p><p>“What… the hell?” Jonathan breathed.</p><p>El smiled, as a light began to pulse. The sound, annoying to anyone unfamiliar but sweeter than the most melodic harmony to those who did know it, filled the room, and El closed her eyes.</p><p>“Dad’s coming home…”</p><p>Glowing faintly, the TARDIS materialized square in the middle of the living room. With a thump, the ship materialized fully, the glow dying down to ambient levels as the cool white from the windows illuminated the room.</p><p>El beamed, running up to the timeship as fast as her legs could carry her. The girl banged on the door as loud as she could. “Well, dad, what do you think?” She raised her voice to be heard on the other side. “Did I surprise you this time?”</p><p>The door popped open, the Doctor sticking his head out.</p><p>“Yes.” The Time Lord smiled proudly, looking the girl up and down. “Completely astonished. Never expected that. You know, it’s fortunate I had enough time for a quick change of clothes.” The Doctor commented, letting the door slam behind him as he stepped out of the ship, everyone in the room looking at him in shock. “That Dalek did a number on the last set… Hello, everyone!” The Doctor did a twirl with a giant grin on his face. “Allow me to introduce myself, I’m El’s dad!” He took Hopper’s hand, shaking the shocked man’s arm with a grin. “Sorry I’m late.”</p><p>“Ha ha!” El beamed, running into the Doctor’s arms.</p><p>“Oof,” The Time Lord staggered, “Blimey, have you gotten bigger? Hm…” He sniffed the air. “Nineteen eighty-four. A year after you boarded the TARDIS, six months after the Pandorica, from your body’s perspective.”</p><p>“Wait, did you say ‘dad?’” Mike repeated.</p><p>“Yes, yes, use your ears!” The Doctor retorted. “I’m El’s dad, also called the Doctor, sometimes called ‘get off this planet.’”</p><p>“Her… dad?” Hopper repeated.</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor smiled. “Wait… Hold on.” The Time Lord looked at the group. “There sure are a lot of you in here… Hm… Quick, tell me everything that’s going on.”</p><p>“Hold on,” Hopper scowled. “You appear out of thin air and expect us to be all buddy-buddy with you? I don’t think so!”</p><p>The Doctor sighed, rolling his eyes. “Going to have to do this the hard way, then.” The Time Lord grabbed Hopper by his shirt, before headbutting the man right in the forehead.</p><p>“Oh my God, Hopper!” Joyce shouted, running over as the Doctor released him.</p><p>“AH!” The Doctor grunted in pain, holding his head. He hated doing information exchanges like that, but it really was the quickest way. In about five seconds, the Doctor knew about everything. The vines and the tunnels underneath the town, Will’s possession, and the Mind Flayer’s attempted invasion.</p><p>Hopper drew in a deep breath, pointing at the Doctor, some of the information from the Doctor having bled back to him. “You’re a-!”</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor confirmed.</p><p>“From-!”</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor nodded.</p><p>“You’ve got a time machine!”</p><p>Steve looked between them. “What in the goddamn…?”</p><p>“Ah, sorry,” The Doctor rubbed his head, “Had to do a quick info-dump. Hate being out of the loop, but never mind cause the answer’s yes!” The Time Lord clapped his hands. “I can fix all of this in a jiffy.”</p><p>“Fix what!?” Dustin shouted, at his wits end from the Time Lord’s sheer speed.</p><p>“Your friend, and this mess, of course!” The Doctor snapped his fingers, pointing to El, before pointing down the hallway. “El, with me.”</p><p>The girl nodded and moved to follow the Doctor.</p><p>Mike tried to follow, but the Doctor grabbed him by the back of the shirt, pulling him back. “Hey! Let go of me, asshole!”</p><p>“Oh… that wasn’t very polite of you.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Hey, I’ve been waiting for her for the past year!” Mike retorted. “I’m not going to just stay behind.”</p><p>“Michael Wheeler…” The Doctor looked him over. “The boy who waited. Listen to me, El and I are about to save your friend, but we can’t do that if there are others in there with us. Trust me, it gets distracting.”</p><p>Mike scowled. “I’m not staying out here.”</p><p>“Yes, you are.” The Doctor retorted. “You and Hopper have something to talk about, I expect.”</p><p>Mike frowned. “About what?”</p><p>“Well, god knows El wasn’t with me for the past three-hundred-and-something days.” The Doctor straightened his jacket, as Mike’s expression became the picture of murder, the boy turning to Hopper.</p><p>The Time Lord flinched in sympathy as he joined El, taking the lead into Will’s room. Joyce looked around in confusion, before running to join the two, as Mike tore into Hopper.</p><p>“…what the fuck just happened?” Max inquired.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor winced, feeling the thing in Will’s mind. “He’s definitely had some cowboys in here…”</p><p>Joyce played with her hands, looking to the Doctor. “Can you really fix him?”</p><p>“Joyce,” The Doctor threw a kind arm around her, “Your son will be fine. You have my word. Now, I don’t know how the… Mind Flayer,” The Time Lord scrunched his nose distastefully, “Will react, but you have to stay out there, whatever you do.”</p><p>“Why?” Joyce questioned.</p><p>“Because I’m willing to bet it’s not just possessing Will, it’s enhancing him.” The Doctor replied. “It will try everything to prevent us from getting it out of Will, and that includes killing. El and I can handle it, but everyone else is defenseless. So, can you go out there, and wait?”</p><p>Joyce looked to Will, then to El. Then, she looked to the Doctor, and nodded, stepping out, the Time Lord shutting the door.</p><p>El walked over to Will first, brushing his head with her hand.</p><p>“…where did you get that ridiculous getup?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“Chicago.” El answered. “It’s not ridiculous. It’s bitchin.”</p><p>“…Bitchin?” The Doctor incredulously repeated. “You could just say cool… Yeah, ‘bow ties are bitchin’ doesn’t have the same ring.”</p><p>El glanced at the Doctor. “That’s what you’re focused on?”</p><p>“Just trying to lighten the mood.” The Doctor looked to her. “You’re going to need to hold him in place. Can you do that?”</p><p>The girl nodded.</p><p>“Ten years of memories-“</p><p>“That I’m not remembering right now.” El cut the Doctor off, focusing her mind on Will. “Just hurry up and do it.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Yes ma’am.” The Time Lord placed a hand to Will’s temple and closed his eyes, creating a telepathic link in case he had to use it, the Doctor pulled his hand away, and stood there, watching as Will returned to consciousness.</p><p>The boy’s eyes snapped open. “Where am I?” He demanded, trying to look around, his head not moving. “What is this!? What is this!? Let me go! Let me go!”</p><p>The boy closed his eyes, eyeballs darting around under his eyelids as the entity in control tried to reach out to the rest of its thralls. For any human, including El, nothing out of the ordinary beyond Will himself happened, but to the Doctor, a shadowy tendril was reaching out.</p><p>“Quiet.” The Doctor calmly commanded, smacking away the shadowy tendril with one of his own mental feelers. The entity recoiled in pain, then it grew angry.</p><p>“Who are you!?” The creature in control demanded. “Who are you!?”</p><p>“I said quiet.” The Doctor growled, striking its mind with his own. Will himself would be unharmed, but he had to let the creature in charge know it was dealing with something that it really shouldn’t be messing with.</p><p>El may have been a star compared to a galaxy when it came to the Mind Flayer… but compared to the Doctor…</p><p>The Mind Flayer was only an atom… compared to a <em>universe.</em></p><p>“As in shut up, stop talking.” The Doctor continued. He wouldn’t normally be so hostile, but the thing was possessing a <em>child.</em> It wasn’t going to get the Doctor, who was never cruel and never cowardly, it was going to get the Time Lord who ended the Time War by committing genocide on both sides. “Now, here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to vacate that body right this second, you’re going to call that army of yours back through that portal, and you will never, <em>ever </em>mess with this planet or its people again, do you understand me?”</p><p>“…let me go.” The creature ordered.</p><p>“I don’t think you understand.” The Doctor replied, cutting off another one of the entity’s mental tendrils. “You aren’t in control here anymore, I am.”</p><p>El glanced at the Doctor, intimidated slightly.</p><p>“You are going to let Will Byers go, right this second, or I’m going to force you out of him myself.” The Doctor growled. “And I’m <em>not </em>going to be gentle about it.”</p><p>“Who are you?” The intelligence questioned.</p><p>“You want to know? You really want to? Okay… I’ll tell you.” The Doctor leaned forward. “I am the Oncoming Storm, the Bringer of Darkness, the Destroyer of Worlds… the Last of the Time Lords. I am the Doctor, and this world is under <em>my </em>protection.”</p><p>Will’s body quickly forced its eyes shut, opening his mouth.</p><p>A tiny little mote of shadow came flying out, directly for the Doctor’s face.</p><p>It had cut its losses with Will, but now, it was going to try to possess the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord reacted quickly, catching it in a jar before sealing the top on.</p><p>“Don’t leave home without a jar, never know when you might need it.” The Doctor shoved it into his pockets, running out of the room. “Now, to close that gate!”</p><p>The Time Lord sprinted past the confused onlookers, dashing into the TARDIS. He ran up to the console, twisting a few dials, flicking some switches, as he pulled the monitor around.</p><p>It showed a feed of the colossal fissure in the lab, glowing red, as a massive shadow tried to approach it.</p><p>“Oh, no you don’t…” The Doctor growled, typing some commands into the keyboard, before pushing a lever all the way up.</p><p>The Time Lord could practically feel the entity’s hatred as the TARDIS closed the gate. It tried to fight back, to force it back open, but the Doctor’s faithful ship was stronger, and the gate snapped shut.</p><p>The console dinged positively, confirming that the gate had been closed.</p><p>The Doctor smiled happily, patting the controls, before walking down the steps to step back outside, closing the door.</p><p>“That’s it. It’s done.”</p><p>“No way.” Hopper tried to call the Doctor’s bluff.</p><p>“Oi, yes way!” The Doctor replied. “Trust me, saving the world from monsters happens to be my day job. Now, let me just move my box,” He pointed to the TARDIS, “I think misses Byers is going to kill me.”</p><p>------------</p><p>Will’s eyes slowly creaked open as he looked around. Feeling a hand grasping his, he looked over, and gasped.</p><p>“Eleven…” Will breathed. “You’re back?”</p><p>“Yes.’ The girl smiled. “So is someone else.”</p><p>The boy followed the girl’s gesture, and he looked to the Doctor, leaning on the wall with wide eyes.</p><p>“It’s you…” Will gasped. “You’re the Doctor… I thought you were just a dream.”</p><p>“In a sense.” The Doctor replied. “Dreams are what happen to memories when they’ve been forgotten.”</p><p>“You’re real… actually, legitimately real…” Will glanced around, before he sharply inhaled. “The monster, what happened to it!?”</p><p>“Ah, that.” The Doctor held up a jar, shaking it, the tiny shadow bug trying to breath the glass-like material to no success. “Won’t be going anywhere. Now…” The Time Lord’s eyes flickered over to the door, at the crowd standing outside. “I think you have some guests.”</p><p>Will nearly paled, as the group descended on him like vultures.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor hopped, kicking his legs as he walked out the back to the shed, the TARDIS parked patiently waiting for her pilot.</p><p>“…I knew you’d stick around to help.” River called from behind the Doctor, the Time Lord turning around to face her. “You never would leave a child in danger.”</p><p>“Well, I happen to think it’s one of my best qualities.”  The Doctor held up her diary, passing it back to her. “Writing’s all back, but I didn’t peek.” He may not have had much self-control when it came to anything else, but he could say that much, at least.</p><p>River smiled as she gently took it. “Thank you.”</p><p>The Doctor also reached into his pocket, handing her the Vortex Manipulator.</p><p>“…who are you, River?” The Time Lord asked, watching as she fastened the device around her wrist.</p><p>The woman looked into the Doctor’s eyes. “You’re going to find out very soon, now. And I’m sorry… but that’s when everything changes.” She smiled gently one last time, before pressing the button, vanishing in a lightning strike.</p><p>“Man… what a woman.” The Doctor commented, turning back to the TARDIS, before pushing the doors open.</p><p>He did a little jig as he hopped up the stairs to the controls, playing around with some of them.</p><p>“Hey!” El popped her head in first. “You better not be trying to leave without me!”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “I would never!” He looked over, watching as the girl helped Will inside, supporting him on her shoulder. “Why’s he here?”</p><p>“He wanted to see the TARDIS.” El answered, as the boy looked around the console room, completely awestruck.</p><p>“It’s bigger on the inside…” Will breathed, as El led him onto the console platform, allowing him to sit down on one of the seats. “I knew it was, cause I’d dreamed about it, but… Wow. It’s different seeing it in person.”</p><p>“You ain’t seen nothing yet.” The Doctor replied, fiddling with the controls.</p><p>El frowned. “What are you doing?”</p><p>“You know me, busy guy.” The Doctor replied. “Take a couple of minutes to say goodbye to your friends then we can be off.”</p><p>“Can we come back?” El asked.</p><p>“Of course we’re coming back, but we don’t want to just up and leave without saying goodbye first.” The Doctor answered. “It’d be terribly rude, no matter what we’re doing.”</p><p>El crossed her arms. “You just got done saving the universe. Take a day off.”</p><p>“Hold on,” Will looked between the two, “Saving the universe?”</p><p>“Long story,” El replied.</p><p>“And no, El, the universe isn’t safe yet, the TARDIS exploded for a reason.” The Doctor pointed. “Something drew the TARDIS to eleven-eleven-eighty-three and blew it up. Why?” He asked, as the phone began to ring. “And why then? Hold on,” He picked up the phone. “Hello! Oh… hello.” The Time Lord cleared out his other ear. “Sorry, you’ll have to speak up, this is a bad line… No, no, that’s not possible! She was sealed inside the seventh obelisk; I was there at the prayer meeting!”</p><p>Will looked to El, and the girl shrugged, not really having an explanation herself.</p><p>“Well no, I get that it’s important. Egyptian goddess loose on the Orient Express… in space. Give us a mo.” He held the phone down, turning to El. “El, I should rather think this is goodbye.”</p><p>“Hmm… goodbye. Yes, goodbye.” El agreed with a nod, glancing to Will, before she moved over to the door. She pulled it open, sticking her head out. “GOODBYE!” She waved with a smile.</p><p>Through the window, El could make out Hopper dropping what he was holding, scrambling to sprint outside before El shut the TARDIS doors.</p><p>Will’s eyebrows shot up as his eyes went the size of dinner plates, as El came back up to the platform. “Goodbye?” He questioned.</p><p>El smiled, steadying him. “Hold on.” She recommended.</p><p>“What!?” Will questioned.</p><p>“Don’t worry, your majesty!” The Doctor smiled into the phone. “We’re on our way.”</p><p>The Time Lord slammed the phone back on the cradle, and pushed the throttle forward, the TARDIS shuddering as the engines engaged.</p><p>The Doctor and El headed off to their next great adventure… one more passenger in tow.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0065"><h2>65. Space and Time</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shortly after the console room had stabilized, the Doctor started pacing around the control console, checking readouts, fiddling with controls every now and again.</p><p>The ‘mummy loose on the orient express’ thing turned out to be a bust. Every time the Doctor had tried to land the ship there, the TARDIS would materialize in empty space. El just looked at the Time Lord, shaking her head.</p><p>Will, meanwhile, was freaking the <em>fuck </em>out.</p><p>“…you kidnapped me.” Will finally breathed after a little while. “I got into a vehicle with a strange man and he kidnapped me! Mom warned me this would happen!”</p><p>“Will,” El placed a hand on his shoulder, “Breathe. First question, do you remember anything from your dreams?”</p><p>“No!” The boy quickly shot back. “The only thing I remember is this place! I think I have a few drawings of it back home… Oh my God,” Will blanched. “They’re going to freak out!”</p><p>“So, second question,” El began, “Do you want to stay there where they’ll treat you like…”</p><p>“Fragile.” The Doctor finished helpfully, checking under the console.</p><p>“Fragile, or do you want to stay with us?” El asked in response. “We’ll look after you, but not act like you’re broken glass.”</p><p>“Besides!” The Doctor added. “We’ve got plenty of stuff round here to get you back up to one-hundred percent in a jiffy! When you get back home, you’ll be better than new! Whaddya say?”</p><p>Will blinked, considering it. “…why’s it a phone box?”</p><p>The Doctor looked up from the console, to Will. “Sorry?”</p><p>“On the outside…” Will pointed to the door. “It says ‘Police Box.’ Why have you labeled a time machine ‘Police Box,’ why not time machine? Is that too obvious?” His speaking began to speed up. “And what is a police box? Do policemen come in boxes? How many do you get? Are you a cop?” The Doctor looked to Will, frowning. “No, look at your hair. Actually… look at your hair! You could give Steve a run for his money! Do you ever look at it in a mirror and go ‘woah, that’s a lotta hair!?’” He looked the Time Lord up and down as El struggled not to laugh, the Doctor looking a bit put out. “And that chin, it’s like… you could poke somebody’s eye out, and the bow tie… am I being annoying?” He finally stopped to ask, wincing.</p><p>“Well… you’re more talkative than the normal folk I bring aboard.” The Doctor diplomatically responded.</p><p>“I think it’s funny.” El giggled. “Best entertainment since finding that Netflix thing in the media room.”</p><p>“…I still want an answer.” Will awkwardly replied.</p><p>“Well, it’s not really a Police Box-“ The Doctor held up a finger, “Which, by the way, is a special sort of telephone box that policemen in Britain used to use.”</p><p>“Really?” El tilted her head. “They were a real thing, there were actually Police Boxes?”</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor confirmed. “Each one had a direct line to the station for civilians to use in event of emergency, and for Police to use as well cause back then radios were too bulky to be carried around by Police on the beat. They were like--kind of like little mini-stations out on street corners, with a desk, chair, and because it’s British, a teapot. And, if a constable happened to catch a ne’er-do-well, they could shove ‘em inside and lock the doors until a car came by to take them to the station.”</p><p>“Okay…” Will nodded at the little history lesson. “…but there are windows on the outside! Where do they go?”</p><p>“If it helps, think of the inside as a pocket-“</p><p>“Pocket dimension.” Will nodded. “Right, okay.”</p><p>The Doctor slowly turned to the boy. “Eh?”</p><p>“After I got… taken in ’83 I read up on all the latest scientific theories.” Will shifted self-consciously. “FTL… aliens… parallel worlds.”</p><p>“Sure, take the magic out of it, why don’t you?” The Doctor grumbled.</p><p>“And there’s a light on the top!” Will recalled. “Do you need to change the bulb!?”</p><p>“Will, calm,” El ordered him again, “Breathe.”</p><p>Will nodded, breathing, before another pressing question gripped his mind. “Why doesn’t the air get out!? It’s made of wood! You have a wooden time machine; do you feel stupid!?” The two looked at him questioningly. “Sorry, just noticed the bow tie again.”</p><p>“It’s camouflage.” The Doctor answered, Will shooting a sardonic look to the bow tie. “Not this, the outside, it’s only <em>disguised</em> as a police box from 1963. Every time the TARDIS materializes in a new location, within the first-“ The Doctor snapped his fingers, “Nanosecond of landing, it analyzes its surroundings, calculates a twelve-dimensional data map of everything within a thousand-mile radius, and determines which outer shell would blend in best with the environment!” The Time Lord smiled, clearly passionate about the inner workings of his ship. “And then…” The Doctor’s smile dropped as he looked around. “The TARDIS disguises itself as a police box from 1963.”</p><p>El frowned. “Oh. How come?” She’d just accepted that the TARDIS looked like that naturally, like it was a fact of existence, like the sky being blue.</p><p>“I-It might be a bit of a fault; I’ve been meaning to check.” The Doctor stammered, typing something into a keyboard.</p><p>“So it’s a police box every time?” Will asked.</p><p>“Yeah, now that you mention it.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“And how long’s it been doing that?” Will inquired.</p><p>“Oh, you know… not long.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>El snorted. “Liar.” She looked to Will. “Been here six months. Police Box every time.”</p><p>Will huffed, looking back to the Doctor. “And is it a cry for help!?”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“The bow tie!”</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor grasped the accessory. “Bow ties are cool.”</p><p>“Are you from another planet!?” Will sarcastically asked.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor answered honestly.</p><p>“…what?” Will asked, seriously this time. “You’re an alien?”</p><p>“In your terms, yes, but in my terms-“ He pointed at Will. “You’re the alien. In quite a few peoples’ terms, actually.”</p><p>Will took a breath. “What kind of alien?”</p><p>“You know, a nice one!” The Doctor quickly answered. “Definitely one of the nice ones!”</p><p>Will’s eyes widened, jaw dropping as he looked to El. “Your dad’s an alien… does that mean you’re an alien?”</p><p>“No.” El shook her head. “Adopted.”</p><p>“Right, okay…” Will nodded, resting a bit easier knowing he wasn’t the only human. “So does that mean you’re like a little slug in a human suit?” He asked, as the Doctor walked to the other side of the console. “Is that why you walk like that!?”</p><p>“No, this is what I really look like.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>El huffed. “Unfortunately.”</p><p>“So, is this ‘make jokes at the Doctor’s expense’ day!?” The Time Lord grumbled, shaking his head as he examined another component on the console. “Even the TARDIS is getting in on it! A dozen tries and we’re not landing on that damn train…” He sighed, pushing back from the console. “Might be time to do some maintenance and a proper recalibration. She did just explode.”</p><p>“Explode!?” Will repeated.</p><p>The Doctor ignored him, “El, get some goggles, time for your next lession in TARDIS piloting: Maintenance.”</p><p>El sighed, standing up.</p><p>Watching the Doctor work on the TARDIS make her feel squeamish sometimes, like watching a surgeon work on a patient in the same room.</p><p>Still, it couldn’t be that bad.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Will sat on the seat near the stairs, watching as El and the Doctor went about performing the maintenance on the TARDIS. The Doctor had procured a roller board to lay on while he worked on the console, and El was on the lower level of the console room, attaching what looked like big hoses to the circular black sphere, the Heart of the TARDIS.</p><p>Will sat there, feeling just a tad useless, as he watched the others work. He allowed himself to think, even though thinking would probably be a bad idea, just leading the events of the days before to repeat.</p><p>So instead, he focused on something else, and came to a conclusion.</p><p>Will got to his feet, walking up to where the Doctor was working, the Time Lord whistling as he reached up from under to pull a lever, not looking.</p><p>“Hey.” Will addressed.</p><p>The Time Lord rolled out. “Hey!” He offered, before rolling back under.</p><p>Will bent down, pulling the Doctor out slightly. “I have a question.”</p><p>The Doctor turned his head. “EL!” He shouted, going back under.</p><p>Will poked the Time Lord, “It’s kind of a pressing one.” A series of pressing ones, actually. Number one on the list being how the Doctor knew El if she’d been hiding away from society with Hopper, the second one being how the Doctor managed to stop the Mind Flayer possessing him while stopping the creature’s plans at the same time, three being why Will had dreams of the TARDIS.</p><p>“Everything alright up there?” El asked, looking up through the glass.</p><p>“Yep, fine, no problem!” The Doctor answered, rolling back under the console.</p><p>Will stood up, hospital gown swishing (he was going to have to ask them if there was a wardrobe with spare clothes or something in this place), looking down through the glass at El. “Maybe you can answer me. Do you know why I had dreams of this place even though I’d never seen it?”</p><p>“Probably nothing.” El replied, shrugging. “I dreamed you were my boyfriend instead of Mike, a couple of times, even though I really didn’t meet you. Dad, it’s humming,” She asked of the Time Lord, “Is it supposed to do that?”</p><p>“Yep, it’s fine, we’re just entering conceptual space.” The Doctor answered, rolling out. “Imagine a banana, or anything curved--actually, don’t, cause it’s not curved, or like a banana--forget the banana!” The Time Lord answered, rolling back under.</p><p>Will blushed, El’s words still registering with him. “Boyfriend?”</p><p>“Attach thermocouplings two, seven, and eleven!” The Doctor ordered, rolling out, standing up, looking down at El seriously. “Like I showed you!”</p><p>“Boyfriend?” Will repeated. “Did you say boyfriend?”</p><p>“Yeah, I did, big deal!” El confirmed. “We’ve all had… dreams about people.”</p><p>“Why are you still wearing that?” The Doctor asked of Will, desperately trying to switch-tracks to prevent being caught in an awkward conversation.</p><p>“No, but, about <em>me</em>?” Will asked, poking himself in the chest. “Bowl-Cut Byers?”</p><p>“Bowl-Cut Byers!?” The Doctor repeated incredulously.</p><p>Will glanced at the Time Lord self-consciously. “It’s better than zombie boy, at least.”</p><p>The Doctor made a little motion like ‘yeah, fair enough,’ before turning back to the console. “Yeah, that hospital gown’s not doing you any favors either.”</p><p>“Is that what it is?” El asked, looking up. “I thought it was…” She froze, face flushing red. “A dress.”</p><p>“A dress!?” Will spluttered.</p><p>The Doctor glanced up from where he was working on the console. “Well, it does have a sort of… dressy silhouette.”</p><p>“It’s not a-“</p><p>The console room tilted as the engines abruptly ground to a halt, the lights going dark.</p><p>Will and the Doctor held onto the console, looking at each other.</p><p>“What was that?” Will fearfully whispered.</p><p>“El!” The Doctor shouted, still looking at Will. “Did you drop a thermocoupling!?”</p><p>“…s-sorry.” The girl apologized.</p><p>“How did you do that!?” The Doctor pushed off the console. “I told you, don’t drop them! I specifically mentioned not dropping!”</p><p>“…um, it might be my fault.” Will said.</p><p>“Of course it isn’t your fault!” The Doctor replied, fiddling with the controls.</p><p>“I-it kinda was his fault.” El shifted the blame.</p><p>“How can it be his fault!?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>“Because…” Will swallowed. “It was my hospital gown… which the only thing I’m wearing under is underwear, and your glass floor.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, looking down to El. “OH, EL, DISGUSTING!”</p><p>The girl offered a cringing smile. “Sorry.” She apologized, still obviously visibly staring in Will’s direction.</p><p>“Well, we’ve landed,” The Doctor turned back to the console, pulling a few levers. “Emergency materialization, should’ve locked onto the safest spot available.” El came walking up to their level as the Doctor pushed the lever forward, the lights in the console room returning to full strength.</p><p>Though it should’ve been cause for relief, the three were disturbed by what they saw over by the doors, standing in front of the viewport.</p><p>Windows and signage glowing a warm orange… the TARDIS’s police box exterior was standing in the console room.</p><p>“Dad…” El stared at the box as the Doctor leaned on the railing. “What’s happened?”</p><p>“Safest spot available.” The Doctor answered. “The TARDIS has materialized… inside itself.”</p><p>“Is that supposed to happen?” Will pointed to the Police Box.</p><p>“Take a guess.” The Doctor replied, taking a slow walk down the stairs.</p><p>“…No?” Will guessed.</p><p>“That’s the one…” The Doctor slowly approached the Police Box, placing a hand on the door.</p><p>“What’re you doing?” El inquired.</p><p>“…I have absolutely no idea.” The Doctor answered, pushing into the box.</p><p>On the other side of the console room, precisely in sync with the Doctor’s motion, the doors opened, and the Doctor emerged from the inner doors.</p><p>“That is… weird.” El commented, looking at the disorienting sight.</p><p>The Doctor stood there, pulling the door back open, sticking his arm through.</p><p>“Okay…” Will chuckled. “That is actually pretty cool.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m glad you’re entertained, Will!” The Doctor replied, stepping through the inner doors, emerging from the Police Box. “When we’re stuck here for all eternity, at least you won’t be bored!”</p><p>Will shrunk slightly, sufficiently admonished.</p><p>“Wait, we’re <em>stuck</em>?” El questioned.</p><p>“The inside of the TARDIS is now joined to the outside of the TARDIS.” The Doctor looked to her. “This is worse than a time loop, a space loop…” He looked at El gravely. “Nothing can ever enter or leave this ship ever again.”</p><p>The inner doors suddenly opened, and all three turned their heads over to it in surprise.</p><p>An exact copy of El, dressed just like she was now, eyeshadow and slicked-back hair and all, came strutting into the console room, stopping just in front of the Police Box.</p><p>“Okay, kids, <em>this </em>is where it gets complicated.” The future one spoke.</p><p>“Jane?” El looked the reflection up and down, as the Doctor slowly approached down the stairs.</p><p>“I’m you. From the future…” Future-El answered, speaking like she was telling a spooky story. “Not that far, though.”</p><p>“Tell me exactly what’s happened.” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>“Well, the exterior shell of the TARDIS has, um…” Future-El stammered. “Drifted forwards in time. If you step into the box now you step into the control room just a little bit in the past.” She finished with a little satisfied nod, like she was patting herself on the back.</p><p>“I don’t understand.” Present-El admitted.</p><p>The future version glanced at her. “Neither do I.”</p><p>“But you just said it!” The present version called her out.</p><p>“No,” Future-El denied. “I’m just repeating it. I’m just remembering what I heard myself saying where I was standing where you are now and I’m just repeating it.” She explained, the Doctor rubbing his forehead painfully. “I’m just repeating this too. And this. And this.”</p><p>“Augh, I still don’t understand.” Present-El groaned.</p><p>“You still don’t.” Future-El grumbled.</p><p>“Okay,” The Doctor cut in, pointing to the El that had been there from the start, “When does this one step into the box? We need to lay out a timeline.”</p><p>“Ah,” Future-El nodded with a smile, “As soon as she slaps Will.”</p><p>“Okay.” Present-El nodded.</p><p>“No, hang on,” Will held up a finger, “Why do I get slapped?”</p><p>“Because we have to stick to the established chain of events,” The Doctor explained, turning to the boy seriously, “One mistake and the whole timeline would <em>collapse</em>--we’d end up with two Els forever, and <em>then</em> what would you do!?”</p><p>“…give one to Mike, keep the other one.” Will answered.</p><p>Present-El gasped, slapping Will.</p><p>“Alright, you,” The Doctor shoved her down the steps. “Get into the police box now.”</p><p>“A-And then I become her?” Present-El ran over to the door of the Police Box, standing across from her future self.</p><p>“Yes, now, go go!” The Doctor rushed.</p><p>Present-El was about to push in, before she stopped, looking the future version up and down. “…Do I really look like that?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Future-El confirmed with a smile. “You do.”</p><p>Present-El giggled. “Bitchin.”</p><p>“Oh,” The Doctor groaned. “This is how it all ends, El flirting with herself, true love at last…” He glanced over to Will. “Terribly sorry, this all has to be horribly confusing.”</p><p>“…did I die?” Will wondered. “I must’ve died, and this is just the dream my oxygen-deprived brain is cooking up.”</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, turning back to the Police Box. “Now, El!”</p><p>“What’s the first line?” Present-El turned to her future self.</p><p>“’Okay, kids, this is where it gets complicated.’” Future-El answered.</p><p>“Gotcha.” Present-El, with a grin, pushed into the Police Box.</p><p>“So,” El turned to the other two, running up the steps. “Is that it? Is everything okay now?”</p><p>“No,” The Doctor answered. “We’re still trapped.”</p><p>The doors opened, Will and El coming running into the console room, eyes wide.</p><p>“What’re you doing!?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p>“You told us to get into the Police Box.” Future-Will answered.</p><p>The Doctor’s head darted around in confusion.</p><p>“Well, from your point of view, you’re about to tell us to get into the Police Box. From our point of view you just told us to get into the Police Box, which is why we got into the Police Box, which is… why we’re here.”</p><p>Present-Will blinked, pointing at his future self. “Do I have to remember <em>all </em>of that?”</p><p>Future-Will shrugged. “It just… happens.”</p><p>Present-El giggled, waving at her future self. “Hi.”</p><p>“Hi!” The girl returned it.</p><p>“Stop that!” The Doctor ordered, pushing the two by him forward. “You two, Police Box, now, run!”</p><p>Present-Will and Present-El stormed into the box.</p><p>“So,” El took a step, “Is that it?”</p><p>“You two!” The Doctor’s hand shot out before either of them could move any further. “Stay exactly where you are!” He ordered, moving around the console.</p><p>Will’s eyebrows furrowed. “What are you doing?” He asked, as the Doctor began to manipulate the controls.</p><p>“I’m setting up a controlled temporal implosion,” The Doctor answered, “It’s the only way to reset the TARDIS, but unless I use exactly the right lever to control the implosion… we’re all gonna die.”</p><p>El rolled her eyes. “You forgot the right lever, didn’t you?”</p><p>“Yes…” The Doctor answered. “But don’t worry… I’m about to find out.”</p><p>The doors opened behind Will and El, the two jumping as someone pushed past them.</p><p>“The wibbly lever!” The Future Doctor answered.</p><p>“The wibbly lever,” The Present Doctor pointed. “Thank you!”</p><p>The Present Doctor pulled the lever, before running down the console, into the Police Box.</p><p>The light on top began to pulse in time with the engines, the exterior shell glowing a faint blue, before it vanished completely, leaving the console room empty.</p><p>“Okay,” The Doctor satisfactorily stated, looking around, “We’re back in normal flight, the TARDIS is no longer inside itself,” He threw his arms around the teenagers’ shoulders, “And the localized time field is no longer about to implode and rip a hole in all causality, but just in case…” He glanced at the Byers boy’s bare legs.</p><p>“Will, go and put some trousers on.” The Doctor patted him on the shoulder, before striding back to the console.</p><p>Will rolled his eyes, and El laughed slightly. His eyes locked on her, and she quickly blushed, putting as much distance between him and her as possible, before Will shook his head, going off to find the wardrobe.</p><p>Dare he say it, but maybe… this would be fun.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0066"><h2>66. Come Along, El</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The ship shuddered, the Red Alert alarms blaring as loud as they could as sparks flew on the bridge. Out of the viewport, a strange, cloudlike material blocked the ship’s path like a thick fog, lighting striking from it to the ship.</p><p><em>“Would all passengers return to their seats and fasten their safety belts.” </em>The ship’s computer announced far too calmly for the emergency at hand. <em>“We are experiencing slight turbulence.”</em></p><p>“Both engines failed,” The Captain came striding into the bridge, smoke hissing from the conduits in the ceiling. “And the storm gate’s gone critical! The ship is going down!” She flinched as something in the room exploded into a mess of sparks. “Christmas is cancelled!”</p><p>“Entering atmosphere now!” The Pilot announced, as the ship began to tilt to one side, out of his control. “Level, keep her level!”</p><p>“With what!?” The Co-Pilot, a man with a visor of some sort attached to his face covering his eyes, snapped back. “I can’t see, I’m flying blind! What the hell is this stuff!?”</p><p>“Clouds?” The Captain suggested, tapping the touchscreen terminal directly in front of her chair, trying to run a scan. Starfleet training may have prepared you for all sorts of odd events over the course of the ship’s lifespan, but that didn’t mean they stopped being exciting… or terrifying.</p><p>A wireframe model of the ship came up on the screen, with text above it. Someone was transmitting a distress signal.</p><p>“Are you sending a distress signal?” The Captain inquired.</p><p>“It’s not me!” The Pilot denied.</p><p>The woman tapped a command, and a small section of the ship highlighted, showing the point of origin.</p><p>“Who’s in the Presidential Suite?” The Captain questioned.</p><p>The door to the bridge opened, and someone stepped in, jumping as sparks flew behind her.</p><p>“I’ve sent for help.” El said, leaning on the railing of the slightly raised level.</p><p>The Captain snapped over to face her. “Who the hell are you!?”</p><p>“Look, my dad’s an expert.” El said. “He can fix this, he’ll come.”</p><p>She looked the girl up and down. “And what are you wearing?”</p><p>El spluttered. It was a perfectly normal, blue suit. The last Doctor’s one, actually. Then again… one of the sleeves was ripped, it was unraveling near the end, and the whole thing was just way too big for her. Not her fault. There was a wardrobe malfunction on the TARDIS.</p><p>Literally. The wardrobe shredded all the clothes and the suit just happened to be the one that was most intact.</p><p>“That doesn’t matter.” El waved away.</p><p>“Are you from the Presidential Suite?” The Captain inquired.</p><p>“Well, yeah, actually.”</p><p>“El!” Will came tumbling in, slamming into the wall. Poor boy looked like he was constantly about to lose his balance.</p><p>Plate armor wasn’t easy to move around in.</p><p>“The light’s stopped flashing,” Will heaved. Not long into his TARDIS traveling career and they had to fight Autons in medieval times, stop the planet from being destroyed countless times over, and run so much his legs might never recover. What was <em>supposed </em>to be a nice, calming retreat to one of the highest-rated galactic cruises was quickly going sour. “Does that mean he’s coming?”</p><p>The Pilot glanced over his shoulders. “Presidential Suite?”</p><p>“Oh!” Will looked down at himself. “Oh, this. We didn’t have any other clothes.”</p><p>“Will, don’t tell people what they don’t need to know!” El admonished him, the boy smacking himself in the face.</p><p>“Excessive oscillating in the centre hull!” The Co-Pilot warned.</p><p>“I’m sorry, does this mean he’s coming,” Will pointed to the walkie-talkie like device in his hand, as he and El moved down onto the lower level of the bridge, “Or does that mean I need to change the bulb!?”</p><p>“He’ll come!” El replied. “He always comes!”</p><p>“Well, he’s cutting it a bit close!”</p><p>“If we can’t stabilize the orbit, we’re finished!” The Captain stated gravely, El and Will looking to each other in alarm.</p><p>“Come on, dad, come on.” El practically prayed, as the ship dove into atmosphere.</p><p>“There’s something coming alongside us.” The Co-Pilot alerted. “Something small, like a shuttle.”</p><p>“Dad, don’t be late…” El willed.</p><p>“Ma’am, we’re receiving a message!” The Pilot informed.</p><p>“On-screen.” The woman ordered.</p><p>A block of text flashed across the viewport, El and Will beaming as they read it.</p><p>
  <em>‘Come along, El!’</em>
</p><p>The TARDIS tore through the clouds, lightning sparking off of the blue box, light flashing on top, as it buzzed the viewport.</p><p>“What does that mean?” The Captain wondered.</p><p>El, despite the situation, never found her smile leaving her. “It’s Christmas!”</p><p>------------</p><p>The engines of the Galaxy-class starship <em>Thrasymachus </em>(built, owned, and operated by Carnival Cruise Line) roared as the ship desperately tried to stay above the cloud layer.</p><p>Far below, past the thick clouds that caused the eternal night of the planet, there was a city. Sardicktown. It was locked in a sort of stasis, aesthetically speaking, bearing a striking similarity to Victorian London, with futuristic tech far beyond what humans of the time had managed. The place was named for the famed Sardicks, the first family of the planet Ember to create a machine that could control the sky.</p><p>It was thus, far from coincident, that at the very center of Sardicktown, from an enormous, cathedral-like building, that a cyclone of the same cloud-like substance streamed into the sky, covering the city in a blanket.</p><p>“On every world, wherever people are, in the deepest part of winter, at the exact midpoint…” Kazran Sardick, the current inhabitant of the enormous hall, began. He was a man of about seventy or eighty (Visibly. Even in Sardicktown, so far behind the rest of galactic civilization, people could live to be about three hundred, if they had the money, and he had all of it), no spouse, no children. Not because he didn’t want a spouse, but he had not the care nor the inclination to chase after anyone, man or woman.</p><p>Remember this, it will be important later.</p><p>“Everybody stops. And turns… and hugs… As if to say ‘Well done! Well done everyone! We’re halfway out of the dark.’” Kazran scowled, shaking his head distastefully, as he looked out the window on the sea of fog in the sky. “Back on Earth, we called this Christmas. Or the Winter Solstice. The first settlers here called it the Crystal Feast. But do you know what I call it?” He turned around, glaring at the family of urchins that had the gall to try and make demands of him. “I call it expecting something for nothing!” He started walking over, cane clacking against the floor as he approached.</p><p>“Sir,” The father of the urchin family, Benjamin, begged, “Mister Sardick. We’re only asking for one day. Just… let her out for Christmas. She loves Christmas.”</p><p>Two of Kazran’s servants wheeled over a cryogenic chamber, shaped like a standing, curved metal coffin with a porthole on the lid and a rotating counter on the front, and left it in front of the family. In the chamber, there was a woman, perhaps about thirty or forty (There really was no way to tell anymore. The skin care routines of the future…) with her eyes closed, like she was forever locked in sleep.</p><p>Kazran gasped sarcastically in false sympathy as he turned around. “Does she? Oh, does she? I see.” He turned back to the chamber, knocking the end of his cane on the class. “Hello? Hello!? Oh, wakey, wakey! It’s Christmas!” Kazran took a step back, cocking his head. “Do you know what? I think she’s a bit cool about the whole thing.” He erupted into laughter, before abruptly stopping, glaring at his servants. “That was funny.”</p><p>The four men erupted into forced laughter.</p><p>“She’s frozen.” A tiny voice piped up, the son, we’ll call him Nathan.</p><p>Kazran turned around, looking repulsed at the little urchin boy standing there with his family. “I’m sorry? She’s <em>what</em>?”</p><p>“She’s in the ice.” The little snot-nosed street rat continued. “She can’t hear you.”</p><p>“Oh, what a clever little boy…” Kazran ruffled the scoundrel’s hair, before he scowled, looking at the two oldest of the group. “You must be very annoyed. How much!?” He pointed to the servants.</p><p>One of the servants stepped forward. “It’s, uh, four-thousand, five-hundred gideons, sir.”</p><p>Kazran shook his head, turning back to the family, as a phone rang, the servant going to answer it. “You took a loan of four-thousand five-hundred gideons, and little miss Christmas over there,” He pointed, “Is my collateral!”</p><p>“We’re not asking for her back.” Benjamin responded. “Just a day. One day. Please… let her have Christmas with us.”</p><p>“Sir,” The servant grabbed Kazran’s attention, carrying a phone in his hands, “It’s the President.”</p><p>“Tell him I’m busy!” Kazran replied. Kicking the hope out of poor people personally was one of his favorite pastimes. “Now,” He turned back to the urchins, chuckling humorlessly, “Where were we? Oh, yes…” He turned to the cryo chamber. “She is pretty though, your daughter. Maybe I should keep her…”</p><p>“She’s not my daughter, sir.” Benjamin corrected, perhaps at making his case even harder to argue.</p><p>“She’s my sister.” The oldest woman, Isabella, spoke up. “She volunteered for the ice when the family were in difficulties many years ago.”</p><p>“Sorry, sir,” The servant interrupted again, “The President says there’s a Galaxy-class ship trapped in the cloud layer and, well, we have to let it land.”</p><p>“Or?” Kazran demanded.</p><p>“…or it will crash, sir.”</p><p>“Oh.” Kazran made a gesture with his hand. “Well, it’s a sort of landing, isn’t it?”</p><p>The servant fought back a sigh. “It’s from Earth, sir, registering over four-thousand life forms on board.”</p><p>Kazran laughed, over the distant sound of scraping, almost like a key on piano wire. “Not for much longer, I think!”</p><p>“We can’t just let it crash, sir.”</p><p>Kazran scowled. “Says who? Give it here.” He growled, taking the phone. “Look, petal, we already have a surplus population. No more people allowed on this planet. I don’t make the rules-oh wait, <em>I do.”</em> He slammed the phone’s speaker back on the microphone.</p><p>Nathan looked over at the fireplace on one wall, eyebrows knitting as soot began to fall from further up onto the fire.</p><p>“Alright, you lot.” Kazran turned back to the urchins, no longer in the mood to be poking fun at them. “Poor, begging people. Off home and pray for a miracle.”</p><p>Benjamin, defeated, began to lead his family out…</p><p>The fireplace erupted into a massive plume of flame, soot, ash, and dust scattering all over the floor as the fire was smothered out.</p><p>A man in a tweed frock coat with Persian wool lapels, dark brown trousers, and a wool waistcoat, came tumbling out of the fireplace, rolling across the floor.</p><p>The Doctor shot to his feet, dusting himself off, coughing, wafting away the dust and ash out of the air. “Ah! Sorry!” He coughed. “Christmas Eve on a rooftop, saw a chimney, my whole brain just went… ‘What the hell!?’” The Time Lord clapped his hands, walking up to the family. “Don’t worry, fat fella will be doing the rounds later.” He said, shaking the hands of each family member. “I’m just scoping out the general chimney… ness. Yes!” He walked back over to the fireplace, putting his hand on the mantle. “Nice size, good traction, ah!” He yanked his hand back, as his skin sizzled on the hot stone. “Big tick.”</p><p>Benjamin frowned. “Fat fella?”</p><p>“Father Christmas.” The Doctor answered, walking back over. “Santa Claus. Or, as I’ve always known him, Nick.”</p><p>“There’s no such thing as Father Christmas.” The boy called him out.</p><p>“Oh yeah!?” The Doctor asked in response, pulling a picture out of his pocket. The thing about his clothes he really liked, the pockets in every single article of clothing he owned linked to the same storage dimension. He didn’t have to move everything over when switching sets. “Me and Father Christmas,” He flashed the picture in the boy’s face, “Frank Sinatra’s hunting lodge, 1952. See the blonde in the back? Albert Einstein! Oh, the three of us together, watch out!” He shoved the picture back in his pocket, before pointing at the boy. “Keep the faith. Stay off the naughty list. Oh!” He turned to the massive, flashing bank of controls in an alcove, “What’s this?” The Doctor darted over in curiosity. “A big, flashy lighty thing! Big flashy lighty things have me written all over them! Well, not actually,” He ran his hands over all the controls, before flopping down in the chair, spinning around. “Give me time. And a crayon. Now, this big flashy thing is connected to the spire in your dome, yeah? And it controls the sky. Well,” The Doctor shot back to his feet, “Technically, it controls the clouds, which aren’t clouds at all. Well, they’re clouds of tiny particles of ice. Ice clouds, love that. Who’s she?” He pointed to the cryo chamber.</p><p>“Nobody important.” Kazran responded.</p><p>“Nobody important?” The Doctor replied, looking through the window on the chamber. “Blimey, that’s amazing. Did you know, in nine-hundred years of time and space, I never met anyone who wasn’t important before?” He stared down Kazran. “Now, that console is the key to saving that ship,” The Doctor ran back over to the control systems, “Or I’ll eat my hat,” He tried flicking a switch, but the machine beeped, the switch staying in place, “If I had a hat. Why isn’t this working!?”</p><p>“Controls are isomorphic.” Kazran informed the Doctor, marching over. “One-to-one. They only respond to me.”</p><p>“Oh, you fibber!” The Doctor turned around. “Isomorphic, ha! There’s no such thing!”</p><p>Kazran flicked the switch, the machine powering down, before he put it back into position.</p><p>The Doctor tried moving the switch himself, the control not budging. The Time Lord scowled, scanning it with the sonic screwdriver. “…these controls are isomorphic.”</p><p>“The skies of this entire world are mine.” Kazran proclaimed. “My family tamed them and now I own them.”</p><p>“Tame the sky?” The Doctor repeated, laughing. “What does that mean?”</p><p>“It means I’m Kazran Sardick!” He turned, walking away from the control alcove. “How could you possibly not know who I am!?”</p><p>“Well, my daughter says I have ADHD, and to be perfectly honest, she’s probably right.” The Doctor clapped his hands, approaching. “So, I need your help, then.”</p><p>“Make an appointment.” Kazran grumbled.</p><p>The Doctor tilted his head. “There are four-thousand and two people on that starship trapped in your cloud belt. Without your help, they’re going to die.”</p><p>“Yes.” Kazran concurred.</p><p>The Time Lord started to let his jovial exterior melt. “You don’t have to let that happen.”</p><p>“I don’t.” Kazran agreed. “But I’m going to. Bye-bye, bored now, Chuck!"</p><p>The servant moved, grabbing onto the Doctor, as the others moved to push the poor family out the door.</p><p>The Time Lord slipped effortlessly out of the servant’s grasp, stomping over to Sardick.</p><p>“Oh, look at you, all tough now.” Kazran remarked as he sat down in a chair</p><p>“There are four-thousand and two people I won’t let die tonight; do you know where that puts you?” The Doctor growled. Four thousand and two people Will and El included.</p><p>“Where?” Kazran asked in response.</p><p>“Four-thousand and three.”</p><p>Kazran didn’t look intimidated in the slightest. “Was that a sort of threaty thing?”</p><p>“Whatever happens tonight, remember…” The Doctor stared the man down. “You brought it on yourself.”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, right.” Kazran grumbled, gesturing to one of the servants. “Get him out of here!” The man walked over, pulling the Doctor along. “And next time, try bringing me some funny poor people!”</p><p>As the family were led out, Nathan slipped out of the grasp of the servants, grabbing an old, burnt charring of wood.</p><p>The boy wound up and tossed it, the object smacking Kazran right in the forehead.</p><p>The old man shot to his feet in rage, stomping over, pulling his hand back.</p><p>“STOP!” The Doctor bellowed. “DON’T HIT HIM, DON’T YOU DARE!” As far as the Time Lord was concerned, the children of the universe were all his children, under his protection. The moment Kazran struck, he would unleash a righteous fury not even the Daleks would be able to incur.</p><p>But the strike never came. Instead, Kazran stood there, frozen and shaking with rage. The Doctor watched in confusion as the man’s hand limply fell and he looked to be… holding back tears?</p><p>“Get them out! Get that foul-smelling family out!” Kazran snarled.</p><p>The servants did as they obeyed, but the Doctor remained, standing there, looking at Kazran curiously.</p><p>“What?” The old man demanded. “What do you want?”</p><p>“A simple life.” The Doctor answered. “But you didn’t hit the boy.”</p><p>“Well, I will next time!”</p><p>“No… I don’t think you will.” The Doctor slowly approached. “Now, why?” That was the puzzle. Kazran was a hateful, spiteful, vindictive old man, willing to let a ship go down with thousands of people on board, children most definitely included, but when confronted with actually striking a child himself… he wouldn’t? Why? “There’s something I’m missing here…” He slowly walked past, looking around.</p><p>“Get out of here…” Kazran hissed. “Get out of this house!”</p><p>“The chairs.” The Doctor inhaled, turning on his heel to face Kazran. “Of course, the chairs. Stupid me, the chairs.”</p><p>“The chairs?” Kazran repeated.</p><p>“There’s a portrait on the wall behind me.” The Doctor recalled; the painting being held in a brass frame. “Looks like you but it’s too old so it’s your father. All the chairs are angled away from it; daddy’s been dead for twenty years but you still can’t bring yourself to look at him. There’s a Christmas tree in the painting but not one in here, on Christmas Eve. You’re scared of him, scared of being like him, and good, because you’re not, you’re not like him, do you know why?”</p><p>Kazran stumbled over his words, the Doctor having read him like an open book. “Why?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Because you didn’t hit the boy.” Perhaps, then, there was some hope for Kazran yet. “Merry Christmas, Mister Sardick.”</p><p>“I despise Christmas!” Kazran replied.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled quietly, moving past him. “Shouldn’t. It’s very you.”</p><p>“It’s what?” Kazran turned around. “What do you mean?”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, looking to the old man. “Halfway out of the dark.” He turned, walking towards the exit, as the servants came walking back in.</p><p>“Get her downstairs with the others!” Kazran ordered his employees. “And clean up this mess!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0067"><h2>67. Kazran Sardick, Age Twelve and a Half</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The <em>Thrasymachus </em>shook as lightning sparked off it, electrical sparks falling from the ceiling.</p><p>El and Will hung onto the safety railing on the bridge, the two praying that the Doctor would be quick. See, the Time Lord had been on board when the ship hit the atmosphere and started going down, but his attempts to solve it by fixing the engines, modifying the deflector array, none of them had worked.</p><p>He finally had decided to jump in the TARDIS and try pulling the ship out with a tractor beam, but the clouds were too thick to get a lock. Now, the last option they had left was solving things on the ground level. He would’ve gone back for the two, but the ship was moving way, way too fast for even the TARDIS to materialize on board.</p><p>“Dad,” El spoke into the comm the Doctor had given them before he popped off, “Do you have a plan yet?”</p><p>
  <em>“Yes, I do.”</em>
</p><p>El sighed, rubbing her face, trying to tune out the shouting of the Captain and the Pilots. “Are you lying again?”</p><p>
  <em>“Yes, I am.”</em>
</p><p>“Well, you’d better think of one, fast.” El replied, pacing around. “Trying to stop a crashing spaceship with my mind is a little bit beyond me.”</p><p>“He doesn’t have a plan!?” Will worriedly looked over.</p><p>El smiled, patting Will on the shoulders. “Yeah, he-“ <em>‘Friends don’t lie!’ </em>“Oh, who am I kidding? No, he doesn’t.”</p><p>“Oh, brilliant!” Will huffed.</p><p>
  <em>“But, there is good news! I’ve tracked the machine that controls the cloud belt, saving the ship should just be as simple as turning the machine off!”</em>
</p><p>“That’s good!” El replied.</p><p>
  <em>“No, that’s bad. I can’t control it.”</em>
</p><p>“Oh. That’s bad.” El shook her head.</p><p>
  <em>“No, that’s good! I met a man who can!”</em>
</p><p>“That’s good!”</p><p>
  <em>“No, that’s bad. He hates me.”</em>
</p><p>“Oh, that’s bad.”</p><p>“Guys…” Will groaned, overhearing the whole thing. “Stop please. Now’s not the time for a comedy routine.”</p><p>“Impact in fifty minutes!” The Captain warned.</p><p>“Dad,” El spoke back into the comm. “The Captain says we have less than an hour. What do we do?”</p><p>
  <em>“…fish.” </em>
</p><p>El spluttered, looking back to the comm. “Sorry, what?”</p><p>
  <em>“Fish that can swim in the fog… I love new planets.”</em>
</p><p>“Dad!” El shouted. “Crashing spaceship! How are you going to fix this!?”</p><p><em>“Give me a bloody second!” </em>The Doctor replied. He started mumbling something, but he was drowned out by something in the background.</p><p>“Dad, I can’t hear you.” El frowned. “Is that… singing?”</p><p>
  <em>“It’s a Christmas carol.”</em>
</p><p>“A what?”</p><p>
  <em>“A Christmas carol.”</em>
</p><p>“A what!?” El shouted back, unable to hear.”</p><p>
  <em>“A Christmas Carol! Oh… had a brainwave!”</em>
</p><p>The line went dead.</p><p>“Dad? Dad!?”</p><p>------------</p><p>Kazran sat in the lone chair in his sitting room, the fire cracking and popping as the last embers of the blaze began to die out one by one. The man himself was long gone, nodded off into a deep sleep.</p><p>Free of Sardick’s input, an image appeared on the wall across from him. Black and white (though the technology for color was ancient) showing a child, a boy, in his bedroom, facing the camera directly.</p><p><em>“Hello.” </em>The boy addressed the camera. <em>“My name is Kazran Sardick. I’m twelve… and a half. This is my bedroom.”</em></p><p>The older Kazran snorted in his deep sleep. “Top secret… special project.”</p><p>The boy in the recording leaned on his desk, peering into the lens. <em>“This is my top-secret special project. For my eyes only… Merry Christmas.”</em></p><p><em>“Kazran!” </em>The boy’s father, Elliot, bellowed from out of frame. <em>“Kazran! Kazran,” </em>The man kicked the door open, the present Kazran’s eyes shooting open, as he looked to the screen in surprise. <em>“What are you doing!?”</em></p><p>The man peered into the screen, as the present Kazran shot to his feet, recoiling back from the screen in fear.</p><p><em>“I’ve warned you before about this.” </em>Elliot hissed. <em>“Stupid, ignorant, ridiculous child!”</em></p><p><em>“I was just going to make a film of the fish…” </em>Young Kazran shrunk.</p><p><em>“Fish are dangerous!” </em>Elliot replied, practically snarling.</p><p>
  <em>“I just want to see them!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Don’t be stupid! You’re far too young.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Everybody at school has seen the fish!”</em>
</p><p><em>“That’s enough!” </em>Elliot ordered. <em>“You’ll be singing to them next, like gypsies!”</em></p><p><em>“Singing works…” </em>Young Kazran defended. <em>“I’ve seen it. The fish like singing.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“What does it matter what fish like!?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“People say we don’t have to be scared of the fish. They’re not really interested in us-“</em>
</p><p><em>“You don’t listen to people! You listen to </em>me!”</p><p>Elliot pulled his hand back, and swung, the film making a cracking sound as the skin on the back of the man’s hand connected with the skin on his son’s face.</p><p>Present Kazran flinched, numbly rubbing the area.</p><p><em>“Sorry, father…” </em>Young Kazran cried.</p><p>“…It’s okay.” The Doctor quietly said, present Kazran jumping and whipping around as the Time Lord made contact with his shoulder. “It’s okay.”</p><p>“What have you done?” Kazran demanded, pointing to the projection. “What is this!?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced up at the picture, then back to Kazran. “Found it on an old drive. Sorry about the picture quality and the colour. Had to recover what I could with quantum enfolding and a paper clip.” The Time Lord flopped down in the chair, grabbing the issue of the Sardicktown Gazette, as Kazran went over to the wall, pressing the buzzer for his servants. “I wouldn’t bother. They quit. Apparently,” The Doctor allowed himself a small smile, “They all won the lottery at the exact same time… which is a bit lucky, when you think about it.”</p><p>“There isn’t a lottery.” Kazran scowled, stomping around to come face-to-face with the Doctor.</p><p>“Yeah, like I said, lucky.”</p><p><em>“You keep these windows closed, understand!?” </em>Elliot on the screen hissed, as Young Kazran sobbed uncontrollably. <em>“Closed!”</em></p><p>Kazran looked to the Doctor. “Who are you?”</p><p>“Tonight…” The Doctor looked up from the paper. “I’m the Ghost of Christmas Past…”</p><p><em>“Mrs. Mantovani will be looking after you tonight. You stay here ‘til she comes.” </em>Elliot ordered, walking back out of the bedroom door.</p><p>“Did you ever get to see a fish?” The Doctor inquired, pushing himself up. “Back then, when you were a kid?”</p><p>Kazran frowned, looking at the screen. “What does it matter to you?”</p><p>“Look how it mattered to you.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>Kazran stared at the screen, as the young reflection of himself lay with his head on his arms, crying non-stop. So many years ago… he’d been stupid, and naïve. “I cried all night… and I learnt life’s most invaluable lesson.”</p><p>The Doctor walked in front of the man. “Which is?”</p><p>“Nobody comes…” Kazran’s face twisted in anger. “Get out! Get out of my house!”</p><p>“Okay.” The Doctor took a step back to the door, the projection partially on the old planks of wood. “I’ll go… but I’ll be back.” He turned, walking through the door. “Way back. Way, way back.” He looked at Kazran as the door shut.</p><p>The man could hear a thump, like someone had struck a drum, before the metallic wheezing began.</p><p>Young Kazran on the film looked up, turning to his window as the grinding ceased with another thump.</p><p><em>“See?” </em>The Doctor, now on the film and looking identical to how he had been, stood at the now-open window of Kazran’s bedroom. <em>“Way back.”</em></p><p>The old man spluttered, as he watched the film.</p><p><em>“Who are you?” </em>Young Kazran asked.</p><p><em>“I’m the Doctor. I’m your new babysitter!” </em>The Time Lord hopped through the window, running in the room and jumping on the bed.</p><p>
  <em>“Where’s Mrs. Mantovani?” </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Ah, you’ll never guess, she won the lottery!”</em>
</p><p>“There isn’t any lottery!” Old Kazran snarled.</p><p><em>“There isn’t any lottery.” </em>Young Kazran echoed.</p><p><em>“I know!” </em>The Doctor jumped off. <em>“What a woman!”</em></p><p>
  <em>“If you’re my babysitter, why are you climbing in through the window?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Cause if I was going out the window I’d be going in the wrong direction, pay attention!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“But… Mrs. Mantovani’s always my babysitter.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor retorted by pointing. <em>“Times change.” </em>The Time Lord slammed his hands down on the desk, peering into the camera. <em>“Wouldn’t you say?”</em></p><p>Kazran stepped back from the projection in shock.</p><p>
  <em>“See? Christmas past.”</em>
</p><p><em>“…who are you talking to?” </em>Young Kazran inquired, slightly put off.</p><p><em>“You.” </em>The Doctor answered. <em>“Your past is going to change, which means your memories are going to change too. Bit scary, but you’ll get the hang of it.”</em></p><p>
  <em>“I don’t understand.”</em>
</p><p><em>“I’ll bet you don’t!” </em>The Doctor turned to the child, smiling. <em>“If only I could see the look on your face.”</em></p><p>“That never happened!” Kazran snarled to himself. His eyes widened, as he found the memories of the events filling his mind, as the Doctor ran over to jump on the bed again. “But it did…”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor bounced on the bed. “Your bedroom! Right, okay, you’re twelve years old so we’ll stay away from under the bed. Cupboard!” The Time Lord pointed, running over. “Love cupboards!” He slowly pulled the door open. “Did you know… there’s a tiny little spider called a face spider. Just like a tiny baby’s head with spider legs, and it’s specifically evolved to scurry up the back of bedroom cupboards…” The Doctor blinked, suddenly slamming the door shut. “Which, yeah, I probably shouldn’t have mentioned. Right so what are we going to do?” He rubbed his hands together. “Eat crisps and talk about girls? I’ve never actually done that but I bet it’s easy. Girls! Yeah?”</p><p>Kazran looked upon the Doctor warily. “Are you really a babysitter?”</p><p>“I think you’ll find I’m universally recognized as a mature and responsible adult.” The Doctor replied, flashing the psychic paper.</p><p>Kazran frowned. “It’s just a bunch of wiggly lines.”</p><p>The Doctor looked at it. “Yeah, it shorted out, finally a lie too big. But listen, Christmas Eve night, you don’t want a real one. You want me.”</p><p>“Why?” Kazran asked. “What’s so special about you?”</p><p>“You ever see Mary Poppins?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Good, cause that comparison would’ve been rubbish.” The Doctor huffed. He shot to his feet, turning to the large, circular open window. “Fish in the fog. Fish in the <em>clouds</em>! How do people ever get bored? How did boredom,” The Time Lord stood in the space inside the window, “even get invented?”</p><p>“My dad’s invented a machine,” Kazran explained, approaching. “To control the cloud belt. Tame the sky, he says. The fish will be able to come down, but only when we let them. We can charge whenever we like.”</p><p>The Doctor snorted, jumping down. “Yeah, I’ve seen your dad’s machine.”</p><p>“What?” Kazran replied. “You can’t have.”</p><p>The air rippled behind the Doctor, the Time Lord turning around, just barely catching a glimpse of something moving through the fog on the outside roof, past the TARDIS.</p><p>“Tame the sky…” The Doctor repeated, shaking his head. Humans had a habit of changing their environment to suit them, not the other way around, for better or worse. “Human beings. You always manage to find the boring alternative, don’t you? You want to see one, fish?” The Doctor inquired. “We can see one. We can see a fish.”</p><p>“Aren’t you going to tell me it’s dangerous?”</p><p>“Dangerous!?” The Doctor laughed. “We’re boys! Everybody knows what we say in the face of danger!”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“’Mummy.’”</p><p>----------</p><p>The sonic screwdriver hung from a string in the ceiling, slowly spinning back and forth as the emitter pulsed green, the device making little radar-like pings every few seconds.</p><p>The lights in Kazran’s room had been turned off, the boy and the Time Lord hiding in the cupboard, with the string running through the crack in the door.</p><p>“Are there any face spiders in here?” Kazran asked.</p><p>“No,” The Doctor shook his head. “Not at this time of night… they’ll all be sleeping in your mattress.” The Time Lord looked to him. “So, why are you so interested in the fish?”</p><p>The boy shrugged. “Cause they’re scary.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “Good answered.”</p><p>“…what kind of tie is that?” Kazran asked, looking at the accessory on the Doctor’s neck.</p><p>“A cool one.” The Doctor straightened it. “Not the usual ensemble, I’ll admit, but it is Christmas, and everything ‘round here looks Victorian. I figured period-dress would be appropriate.”</p><p>The boy slowly nodded, not really getting what the Doctor was saying. “Why is it cool?”</p><p>“Why are you <em>really </em>interested in fish?”</p><p>“…My school.” Kazran swallowed. “During the last fog belt the nets broke and there was an attack. <em>Loads </em>of them. A whole shoal. No one was hurt, but it was the most fish ever seen below the mountains.”</p><p>“Were you scared?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“I wasn’t there.” Kazran admitted. “I was off sick.”</p><p>“Ooh, lucky you.”</p><p>The boy put his head down.</p><p>“Not lucky, then.”</p><p>“It’s all anyone ever talks about now. The day the fish came.”</p><p>“And you feel left out now.” The Doctor guessed, quite correct. “Not easy being odd one out.”</p><p>“You would know?” Kazran asked.</p><p>“Oh yeah.” The Doctor admitted. To those of you who don’t know, it may come as some of a surprise, but the Doctor was very, very, <em>very </em>atypical of Time Lords. Back on Gallifrey, he rose to a position of some prestige, dignity, and honor. A <em>Councilor. </em>He did have a bit of a reputation as an eccentric to be sure, but he was one of the few, the very few, to campaign against cruel conditions in the wider universe, and actually succeeded despite the Time Lords’ non-intervention policy. He had it all. Family, power, prestige…</p><p>And then he threw it all away, stole the TARDIS, and started throwing the principal law of his entire species back in their faces so he could <em>experience </em>the universe, rather than watch it. The Doctor looked to the laptop recording. “I know what it’s like… being the kid left out in the dark and cold. Oh…” The Time Lord looked to the string. “I think we’ve got one…” The Time Lord stood up, looking through the crack in the door.</p><p>“Doctor, you mustn’t.”</p><p>“Trust me?” The Doctor looked down at him.</p><p>“…okay.” He answered, sounding not quite sure.</p><p>“Oi, eyes on the tie.” The Doctor pointed at it. “Look at me. I wear it, people think it looks ridiculous, and I don’t care. Trust me?”</p><p>Kazran nodded with a smile. “Yes.”</p><p>“That’s why it’s cool.” The Doctor turned back to the door. The Time Lord pushed it open, slowly stepping out.</p><p>A little pilot fish, just floating there in the air, poked and prodded the emitter of the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>“Hello, fishy…” The Doctor cooed. “Let’s see…” He slowly moved around the outer rim of the room. “Interesting. Crystalline fog, eh? Maybe carrying a tiny electrical charge…” He suggested. “Is that how you fly, little fish?”</p><p>“What is it?” Kazran asked from behind the door of the cupboard. “What kind? Can I see?”</p><p>“Just stay there a moment.” The Doctor advised.</p><p>“Is it big?”</p><p>“No.” The Doctor whispered. “Just a little one… So, little fella, what do you eat?”</p><p>The window was suddenly pushed open as another one of the flying creatures swam in, its mouth clamping down on the small little fish.</p><p>It was a <em>flying shark</em> for God’s sake!</p><p>The Doctor stepped back, as the screwdriver and the pilot fish vanished in the shark’s maw. “Oh! Uh…”</p><p>“Can I come out?” Kazran called.</p><p>“No, no.” The Doctor replied, slowly stepping in that direction while keeping his eyes locked on the shark. “Maybe just… wait there for a moment.”</p><p>The shark growled, sniffing the air.</p><p>“What colour is it?”</p><p>“Big…” The Doctor gulped. “Big colour.” The shark’s eyes locked on the Time Lord and the Doctor sprinted into the cupboard, slamming the door, pressing his back to it.</p><p>“What’s happening?” Kazran asked.</p><p>“Well, focusing on the plusses, you’ve definitely got a story of your own now!” The shark banged on the door, the Doctor jumping slightly. “Plus I got a good look at the fish and I think I understand how the fog works which will allow me to save a ship of four-thousand people including my daughter and her friend in the future! And, I bet I’ll get some very interesting readings off my sonic screwdriver as soon as I fish it out of the shark’s mouth!”</p><p>“There’s a <em>shark </em>in my bedroom!?”</p><p>“Oh, fine!” The Doctor shot back. “Focus on that!” The door stopped banging, the Doctor looking to it.</p><p>“Has it gone?” Kazran whispered. “What’s it doing?”</p><p>“What do you call it when you have no legs.. and you’re taking a run-up?” The Doctor pushed off the door, running to the other side, pulling Kazran down next to him.</p><p>“It’s going to eat us!” Kazran screamed, as he and the Doctor pushed into the back wall of the cupboard.</p><p>“Well, maybe we’re going to eat it, but I don’t like the odds!” The Doctor replied, looking at the enormous jowl of the shark, the inside of its mouth glowing green. “It’s stuck! Let’s see, tiny shark brain, if I had my screwdriver I could send a pulse and stun it!”</p><p>“Where’s your screwdriver!?”</p><p>“Well, concentrating on the plusses… within reach!” The Doctor chuckled. “You know, there’s a real chance being wedged in the doorway like that is forcing its mouth open!”</p><p>“There is!?”</p><p>“Just agree with me, cause I’ve only got two goes, then it’s your turn!”</p><p>“Two goes!?”</p><p>The Doctor rolled up the sleeves on his frock coat. “Two arms!” He looked to the child, smiling. “Geronimo!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0068"><h2>68. Best Christmas Ever</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“What’s the big fishy done to you…?” The Doctor held the lower, broken half of the sonic screwdriver, the green core flickering unsteadily. “Half a screwdriver, what use is that? Bad, big fishy…”</p><p>The two were out on the roof, the TARDIS just nearby, with the shark not far either, laying on the roof inert.</p><p>“Doctor?” Kazran called. “I think she’s dying.”</p><p>The Doctor walked over, pressing the button on the broken half. “The other half’s still inside… But that’s not the problem, I think. I don’t think they can last for very long outside the cloud belt. Just quick raiding trips on a…” He looked to the child, tears silently falling. “Foggy night.”</p><p>Kazran sniffled, looking to the shark. “Can’t we get it back up there? I didn’t want to kill it.”</p><p>“She was trying to eat you.” The Doctor pointed out.</p><p>“…she was hungry.” Kazran replied.</p><p>“…I don’t know if there’s anything I can do.” The Doctor admitted. “I could take her back up, but… I doubt she’d survive the trip. We’d need a fully functioning life support.”</p><p>“What, like an ice box?” Kazran suggested.</p><p>------------</p><p>Old Kazran watched with rapt interest as the the boy led the Doctor down into the massive halls of the Sardick household, down into a room that looked like a giant, industrial freezer, built in Victorian times.</p><p><em>“What is this?”</em> The Doctor asked, looking through the window on the door.</p><p><em>“The surplus population.”</em> Young Kazran answered, helping the Doctor to turn the wheel to open the door. <em>“That’s what my dad calls it. It’s not turning.”</em></p><p><em>“What’s the number?” </em>The Doctor ran over to a keypad, trying to sonic it, only to fail as the exposed core flickered.</p><p>Old Kazran blinked. “7258.”</p><p><em>“I don’t know!” </em>Young Kazran replied to the Time Lord.</p><p><em>“This place is full of alarms.” </em>The Doctor tried brute-forcing the keypad. <em>“It isn’t just the door, I need the code!”</em></p><p>“7258!” Old Kazran repeated.</p><p>
  <em>“I need the number!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I’m not allowed to know until I’m older!”</em>
</p><p>“7258!” Old Kazran shouted.</p><p>“Perfect!” The Doctor called from the door. “Just what I needed, thanks!” He slammed the door, appearing back on the screen.</p><p>------------</p><p>“7258!” The Doctor told Kazran, the boy punching it into the number pad.</p><p>The lock flashed green, and the Doctor turned the wheel, pulling the heavy metal door open.</p><p>“Ah, there’s fish down here too.” The Doctor noted as he and Kazran entered.</p><p>“Yeah, but only tiny ones.” Kazran replied. “The house is built on a fog lake, that’s how dad freezes the people.” He explained, leading the Doctor down the aisles of cryo chambers. “They’re all full, but we could borrow one.” He stopped, looking at one. “Yeah, this one.”</p><p>The Doctor took the lamp, peering through the glass. It was the same blonde woman Old Kazran had taunted the family of poor people with. Whoever she was, she’d been down there for a while. “Hello again.”</p><p>“You know her?” Kazran looked to the Doctor.</p><p>“Why, uh…” He looked to the boy. “Important, is she?”</p><p>“She won’t mind. She loves the fish.” The boy looked onto the side of the chamber, pressing something into a keypad on the side.</p><p><em>“My name is Abigail Pettigrew,” </em>A blue hologram of the woman, appearing on the window, recited. <em>“And I’m very grateful for Mister Sardick’s kindness…”</em></p><p>“She starts to talk about the fish in a minute.” Kazran recalled, evidentially having seen the recording before.</p><p>The Time Lord turned, slowly walking down the row, looking into each pod. “Why are all these people here? What’s all this for?”</p><p>“My dad lends money.” Kazran answered. “He always takes a family member as… collateral?”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “Hard man to like, your dad. I suppose you know something about that…”</p><p>Kazran glanced away, pressing the button on the chamber to start the defrosting sequence.</p><p>The Doctor’s half of the sonic screwdriver warbled.</p><p>“What’s that?” Kazran inquired.</p><p>The Doctor took the half of the screwdriver out of his coat pocket. “Just my half of the screwdriver trying to repair itself, signaling the other half.” The Time Lord sharply inhaled, looking up, as he heard a sonar-like beep echo in the chamber.</p><p>“The other half’s inside the shark…” Kazran recalled.</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor swallowed. “Sounds like she’s woken up… Okay, so, it’s homing in on the other half of the screwdriver.</p><p>The shark roared, leaping out of the fog, as the Doctor and Kazran jumped out of the way. The Time Lord knocked a few of the pods down, as Kazran ran between them, dodging and weaving through the rows as he sprinted.</p><p>Eventually, the boy came to a stop, turning around.</p><p>The shark growled, dorsal fin poking out of the fog as it moved behind the boy.</p><p>“In the bleak midwinter…” Kazran gasped, as a woman started to sing in an operatic manner. “Frosty wind made moan…”</p><p>Kazran got to his feet, slowly walking back in that direction.</p><p>“Earth stood hard as iron… Water like a stone…”</p><p>Kazran turned the bend, one of the pod doors open, as down the way, Abigail stood next to the shark, petting it as she sang.</p><p>“Snow had fallen, snow on snow… snow on snow… In the bleak midwinter… long ago…”</p><p>The Doctor jumped out of the row, dusting off his hair, looking about frantically. The Time Lord caught sight, approaching.</p><p>“It’s not really the singing of course.” The Doctor said, standing next to Kazran.</p><p>“Yes, it is.” Kazran refuted, as Abigail continued to sing.</p><p>“Nah.”</p><p>“The fish love the singing, it’s true.”</p><p>“Nah.” The Doctor shook his head. “The vibrations resonate the ice crystals causing- Ow!” He smacked the back of his neck. “Fish bit me!”</p><p>“Shut up, then.” Kazran ordered.</p><p>Abigail continued to sing, looking at the two of them.</p><p>“Of course, that’s how the machine controls the cloud belt,” The Doctor began. “The clouds are ice crystals, if you can vibrate the crystals, then- Ow! Did it again!”</p><p>“Look, the fish like the singing, okay!? Now, shut up!”</p><p>------------</p><p>Old Kazran smiled, reminiscent, as he looked upon the scene. He turned, looking to the wall that, until just a few moments ago yet also for years, held a portrait of Abigail.</p><p>“It’s bigger-“</p><p>------------</p><p>“On the inside!” Kazran smiled, looking into the TARDIS.</p><p>“Yep, it’s the colour, knocks the walls back.” The Doctor rapped his knuckles on the ice box. “Shark in a box, ready to go!”</p><p>-------------</p><p>Old Kazran walked up to the wall, smiling fondly for days gone by that had still hadn’t happened.</p><p>“Abigail…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“This is amazing!” Abigail looked around the inside of the TARDIS with a smile.</p><p>“Nah, this is transport!” The Doctor replied, ignoring the TARDIS’s little shock to his fingers, as the engines settled. “I keep amazing…” He ran over to the doors. “Out here!”</p><p>He opened the doors, the other two gasping in wonder at the schools of fish swimming through the air outside, moving through the clouds like they were reefs</p><p>----------</p><p>Old Kazran moved swiftly over to a bookcase on the wall. Moving the small curtains on the very bottom out of the way, he grabbed a small black chest filled with the memories of things that were yet to come.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Come on, then!” The Doctor turned to the ice box, entering the code into the keypad. “Let’s get this shark out.”</p><p>Kazran looked out, and then turned to Abigail. Deciding on it as a spur-of-the-moment impulse, he took his camera, and grabbed a snapshot of the moment.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Old Kazran reached into the black box, grabbing an old picture only taken moments ago. Abigail looked out onto the almost endless sky-reefs, smiling, as the sunlight bounced off her golden hair.</p><p>The old man smiled.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Wa-hey!” Kazran smiled, looking out at the cloud reefs. “Look at them go!”</p><p>The Doctor smiled at the sight, as he closed the icebox. The little number counter on the front caught his attention, and his head tilted in curiosity. “Abigail, this number--what does it mean?”</p><p>“It pertains to me, sir, not the fish.” The woman answered.</p><p>“Yeah, I guessed,” He looked up. “But how?”</p><p>Abigail’s brow knit together. “You are a doctor, you say? Are you one of mine?”</p><p>“Why?” The Time Lord absently stroked the wool lapels of his frock coat. He caught what he was doing, and his hands dropped. “Do you need a Doctor?” The console dinged, grabbing the Doctor’s attention. “Ah, sorry, time’s up, kids!” The Time Lord said, coat flapping as he ran back up to the controls.</p><p>“Why?” Kazran asked, a bit dejected.</p><p>“It’s nearly Christmas day!” The Doctor answered with a smile.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“If you should ever wish to visit again-“ Abigail said, looking to the Doctor, as she stood in her pod, still not having been refrozen.</p><p>“Well, if I’m ever in the neighborhood- Ow!“</p><p>Kazran elbowed the Doctor. “He comes by every Christmas!”</p><p>“What!?” The Time Lord turned to the boy, who was already shutting the pod door. “No, no I don’t-“</p><p>----------</p><p>“MERRY CHRISTMAS!” The Doctor and Kazran shouted, wearing oversized Santa hats and looking exactly the same as they had before.</p><p>“Doctor!” Abigail smiled.</p><p>------------</p><p>“What are we gonna do!?” The woman asked, as the three of them ran <em>away </em>from the TARDIS.</p><p>“The Doctor’s got a great plan!” Kazran answered. “Wait till you hear!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You are out of your mind!” Abigail said, as the Doctor hitched up a harness with just a few electronics to a small open carriage, barely large enough for the three of them. “This will never work!”</p><p>“Don’t think shark,” The Doctor replied. “Think Dolphin!” He placed Kazran on the driver’s seat.</p><p>“A shark isn’t a dolphin!” Abigail retorted.</p><p>“It’s nearly a dolphin.”</p><p>“No it isn’t!” Abigail refuted.</p><p>“Well that’s where you’re wrong because-“ He pointed the broken half of the screwdriver towards the sky. “Shut up!”</p><p>“Oh, it could be anywhere.” Kazran hopped down from the seat, as the sonic screwdriver warbled uncertainly. “Will it really come?”</p><p>“No chance,” The Doctor turned to the boy. “Completely impossible.”</p><p>A sonar-like beeping echoed in the sky.</p><p>“Except at Christmas.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“How are we going to get back!?” Abigail asked over the roaring of the wind as the sky shark pulled the carriage along.</p><p>“I don’t know!” The Doctor replied, gripping onto the reins for dear life.</p><p>“Do you have a plan!?” Abigail asked.</p><p>“Not at all!” The Doctor laughed. “All right, all together now… YEEEEEEEEHAAAAAW!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Best Christmas Eve ever!” Abigail proclaimed, stepping back in the pod.</p><p>“Til next one.” Kazran pointed.</p><p>“What!?” The Doctor whipped around to him. “No! This was just a one time-“</p><p>------------</p><p>Old Kazran sat in the floor of his sitting room, looking back on the old photos fondly. “New memories…” He murmured. “How can I have new memories?”</p><p>
  <em>“MERRY CHRISTMAS!” The Doctor and Kazran shouted, greeting Abigail with open arms and giant smiles.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Doctor!” Abigail smiled. “Where to this time!?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Did I mention, all of time and space!?”</em>
</p><p>Kazran looked through the yellowed photographs, coming across one of him and the Doctor standing in an Egyptian bazaar.</p><p>
  <em>“MERRY CHRISTMAS!” The Doctor and Kazran shouted, greeting Abigail with open arms, giant smiles, fezzes on both of their heads, and Kazran wearing a bow tie almost exactly like the Doctor’s.</em>
</p><p>The old man smiled, looking at a photograph of Abigail standing in front of a pyramid.</p><p>
  <em>“Merry Christmas!” The Doctor shouted, wrapped in a scarf about fourteen feet long. Next to him, Kazran stood, quite obviously having gone through a growth spurt, acne all over his face, which he tried to cover with his matching scarf.</em>
</p><p>Old Kazran laughed, remembering the sight of the Time Lord getting himself tangled up in the monstrosity of wool.</p><p>
  <em>“MERRY CHRISTMAS!” The Doctor and Kazran beamed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Abigail’s eyes drifted over to Kazran, now eighteen. “Kazran…”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>------------</em>
</p><p>The door clicked shut as the Doctor hopped up to the TARDIS console, quickly typing in coordinates.</p><p>“You’ve grown.” Abigail remarked, looking at Kazran.</p><p>The young man blushed. “Yeah.”</p><p>“And now you’re blushing.”</p><p>“…sorry.” Kazran awkwardly smiled.</p><p>“It’s okay.” Abigail smiled gently.</p><p>“So, Doctor,” Kazran hurried to stand next to the Time Lord, “Where to this time?”</p><p>“Pick a Christmas Eve,” The Doctor retorted. “I’ve got them all right here.”</p><p>“Might I make a request?” Abigail politely asked.</p><p>The Doctor threw his hand up. “Of course.”</p><p>“This one.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. He was already fifty steps ahead.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Abigail stood on the street, looking through the window of her family’s household. It was a small place, run down. Almost the sort of place Charlie Bucket would be afraid to call home. Despite that… the people inside were happy, joyously going about their Christmas without a care in the world.</p><p>“Who are they?” Kazran whispered to the Doctor.</p><p>“Her family.” The Time Lord answered. “The lady’s her sister. I met her once, when she was older.”</p><p>A teardrop fell from the blonde’s eyes.</p><p>“Abigail’s crying…”</p><p>“Yes.” The Doctor quietly hissed in response. “Which is why you should go over there and make her feel better!”</p><p>Kazran quickly nodded, and took a few strides over, standing next to the woman.</p><p>“My sister’s family.” Abigail told the young man. “They’re so happy.”</p><p>“…they look very poor.”</p><p>“They are very poor.” Abigail granted. “That doesn’t mean you can’t be happy.”</p><p>Kazran glanced at her, as the residents closed the curtains over the window. “Then why aren’t you?”</p><p>Abigail sniffled. “Because this is the life I can never have.”</p><p>“Why not?” Kazran asked.</p><p>The woman merely swallowed, taking Kazran’s hand in her own.</p><p>Kazran’s face flushed pink.</p><p>“I think you’re blushing again.”</p><p>The two jumped as the curtains were suddenly pulled open, the Doctor standing inside with a smile plastered on his face.</p><p>“Well don’t just stand there! Come in!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Pick a card,” The Doctor held the deck out to the young Benjamin. “Any card at all.” The boy took it. “You memorize the card, you put it back in the deck, don’t let me see it!”</p><p>“Is this what it looked like last year?” Abigail’s brother-in-law, Eric, inquired of his wife, hanging a string of lights on a nearby mantle, enlisting the assistance of Kazran.</p><p>“It doesn’t have to be exactly the same!” Isabella replied, sitting across from Abigail.</p><p>“…I’m starting again.” Eric decided, pulling the decorations down. “Come on, Kazran, we’re starting again.”</p><p>“Three of clubs!” The Doctor held up the card.</p><p>Benjamin laughed. “No.”</p><p>“You sure?” The Doctor looked at the face. “Cause I’m very good at card tricks.”</p><p>“It wasn’t the three of clubs.”</p><p>“Well, of course it wasn’t-“ The Doctor threw the card into the fireplace without looking. “Cause it was actually… the seven of diamonds!”</p><p>“No!” The boy chuckled.</p><p>“Oi, stop it!” The Doctor hissed. “You’re doing it wrong!”</p><p>Isabella suddenly slammed her hands down on the table, standing up. “Tomorrow’s Christmas dinner is cancelled because my sister refuses to attend.”</p><p>Abigail’s jaw dropped in shock. “Isabella!”</p><p>“Instead,” The woman amended, “We’ll have it tonight.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Three!” The Doctor began, a paper crown on his head and Christmas crackers in both hands. “Two! One! PULL!”</p><p>The people forming the chain of crackers all down the table pulled, each one of them cheering and laughing as the crackers popped.</p><p>Benjamin laughed, taking a folded-up card out of his. “How did you do that?”</p><p>The Doctor tapped his nose, winking, before gesturing. “Your card.”</p><p>The boy unfolded it, smugly facing it towards the Doctor. “No.”</p><p>“Oh…” The Time Lord spluttered. “Shut up!”</p><p>--------</p><p>“Best Christmas Eve ever.” Abigail smiled, hugging the Doctor.</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor pulled back, smiling. “’Til the next one.”</p><p>“I look forward to it.” Abigail glanced at the young man standing not far away. “Now, I’d like to say goodnight to Kazran.”</p><p>“Of course, yes.” The Doctor turned, looking between the two expectantly. “Well, on you go.”</p><p>Kazran glared at the Doctor.</p><p>“OH!” The Time Lord suddenly realized, starting to step back. “I’ll… go then?” He turned about on his heel, breaking into a sprint.</p><p>“Doctor!” Kazran whispered, catching up to the Time Lord. “I think she’s going to kiss me!”</p><p>“And the problem is!?” The Doctor pushed him back in that direction.</p><p>“I’ve,” Kazran pulled the Doctor to a stop, “Never kissed anyone before! What do I do!?”</p><p>“Well,” The Doctor threw an arm around the young man’s shoulder. “Try to be all nervous and rubbish and a bit shaky.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“Cause you’re going to be like that anyway might as well make it part of the plan and then it’ll feel on purpose. Off you go.”</p><p>“N-now!?” Kazran stammered. “I kiss her now!?”</p><p>“Kazran,” The Doctor looked at him. “It’s either this or stay in your bedroom inventing a new kind of screwdriver, don’t make my mistakes. Now, go!” He shoved him in Abigail’s direction. “Good God…” He muttered. “If this is what El’s going to be like when she starts dating… Lord help me.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0069"><h2>69. A Christmas Carol</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Old Kazran looked through the old, yellowed polaroids, finding one that had been taken during a trip to New York. He and Abigail stood in front of the Statue of Liberty, smiling. The Doctor had taken them all sorts of places.</p><p>Eventually, he found one with writing on the back. California, 1952…</p><p>-----------</p><p>Abigail stood at the edge of the pool, looking out solemnly onto the water. Jazz music played distantly in the background as Kazran hurried up to her.</p><p>“Abigail.” The young man breathed. “Are you coming back? The Doctor is gonna do a duet with Frank!” His smile slowly dropped, as he saw Abigail’s mood. “Abigail? What’s wrong?”</p><p>The woman wiped her eye. “I have something to tell you.”</p><p>Kazran swallowed. “A bad thing?”</p><p>“…A very bad thing.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Guys!” The Doctor poked his head around the corner, laying his eyes upon the two kissing each other like tomorrow wouldn’t come. “We need to go quite quickly, because I believe I just got engaged to Marilyn Monroe!” The Time Lord spluttered, walking around the two of them, looking. “Wha- B- How do you keep that up? Surely you’d need to come up for air.”</p><p>“Lemme go!” The drunken woman far across the yard slurred. “Graham, Yaz… the other one… I NEEED TO PHONE A CHAPEL!”</p><p>“My god, she’s phoning a chapel.” The Doctor gulped. “And there’s a car outside!? Guys, this is happening NOW!”</p><p>“YOO-HOO!” The drunken woman waved to the Doctor, as her companions tried to keep her from making the biggest mistake of her life.</p><p>“Yoo-hoo!” The Doctor waved in response, before looking to the other two in frustration. “You know what? Fine! I’ll just go and get married then.” He tugged his coat, storming around the side of the pool. “Marilyn! Get your coat!”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor stood down the row of the ice boxes, watching as a tiny fish prodded the broken core of the sonic screwdriver. Kazran shut the door on the pod, so the Doctor put the bit of junk away, walking towards him.</p><p>“There we go. Another day, another Christmas Eve. I’ll see you in a minute.” He tapped Kazran on the shoulder. “I mean a year.”</p><p>“Doctor?” Kazran called, stopping the Time Lord before he could enter his ship. “Listen, uh… Why don’t we leave it?”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, tilting his head. “Leave what?”</p><p>“You know… this.” Kazran gestured to the TARDIS. “Every Christmas Eve is getting a bit old.”</p><p>“…old?”</p><p>“Well, Christmas is for kids. Isn’t it?” Kazran evasively shrugged. “I’ve got some work with my dad now. I’m going to focus on that.” He explained, undoing his bow tie.</p><p>“Sorry, I-“ The Doctor apologized. “Didn’t realize I was boring you.”</p><p>“Not your fault.” Kazran swallowed, turning around to exit the room. “Times change.”</p><p>“Not as much as I hoped… Kazran.” The Doctor stopped him, handing him the broken half of the sonic screwdriver. “I’ll be needing a new one anyway. What the hell? Merry Christmas.” He said as Kazran took it. “And if you ever need me, just activate it, I’ll hear you.”</p><p>“I won’t need you.”</p><p>The Doctor looked upon the young man seriously. “What’s happened? What are you not telling me?”</p><p>Kazran said nothing, turning to leave.</p><p>“What about Abigail?” The Doctor called.</p><p>“I know where to find her.”</p><p>“…nah.” The Doctor sighed, as out of the corner of his vision, the little counter, which had been at eight the first time the Doctor had woken Abigail, ticked down to one.</p><p>----------</p><p>Old Kazran sat in his chair, silently crying, as he turned around.</p><p>The picture of his father was back.</p><p>The old man got up from his seat and walked to his old bedroom. Opening a drawer covered in dust, he reached inside, and pulled out the broken half of the sonic screwdriver, coated in dust.</p><p>A phone rang downstairs.</p><p>---------------</p><p>“Yes, what!?” Kazran snarled. “Oh, Mister President, we’ve been through this! It’s not going to crash on my house so what’s it got to do with me? Yes, I know, four-thousand and two. As a very old friend of mine once took a very long time to explain, life isn’t fair!” He slammed the phone down on a table, hanging up.</p><p><em>“Hello!” </em>Kazran jumped, as a teenage girl suddenly materialized in front of him, glowing green.</p><p>“Who are you!?” Kazran demanded. “What are you doing here!?”</p><p>El tilted her head. <em>“Oh, did you think it was over? No… I’m the Ghost of Christmas Present.”</em></p><p>“A ghost?” Kazran scoffed. “You look more like a street urchin than a ghost.”</p><p>Kazran’s chair was suddenly knocked over by an invisible force, the man jumping in surprise, before he slowly turned back to the girl.</p><p><em>“See? Ghost.” </em>El said. <em>“And, I can also do… this.” </em>She vanished.</p><p>“Do what!?” Kazran demanded. “What are you talking about!?”</p><p>
  <em>“Silent night… holy night…”</em>
</p><p>The man turned, following the singing.</p><p>-------------</p><p>
  <em>“All is calm… all is bright…”</em>
</p><p>Kazran walked up to the door of the freezer room, looking through the window.</p><p>There, on the inside, was a crowd of people, glowing green just like El had been.</p><p><em>“Round yon virgin mother and child…” </em>The people staring blankly sang.</p><p>Punching in the code, Kazran turned the wheel, and pulled the door open.</p><p>
  <em>“Holy infant so tender and mild… Christ, the savior is born… Christ, the savior is born…”</em>
</p><p><em>“They’re holograms.” </em>El explained, materializing behind Kazran. <em>“Projections, like me.”</em></p><p>Kazran turned to her, “Who are they?”</p><p><em>“The people on the ship.” </em>El answered. <em>“The ones you’re going to kill if you don’t shut off that machine.”</em></p><p>“Why are they singing?” Kazran questioned.</p><p><em>“…so they won’t die. Which one’s Abigail?” </em>She inquired, looking to the pods.</p><p>Kazran whipped around.</p><p>
  <em>“The Doctor told me.”</em>
</p><p>“Did he now?”</p><p>
  <em>“You know the Doctor, he doesn’t hold back.”</em>
</p><p>“How do I!?” Kazran retorted. “I never met him before tonight! Now I seem to have known him all my life… why?”</p><p>
  <em>“You’re the only person who can let the ship land. He was trying to change your mind… and he was trying to be nice about it.”</em>
</p><p>“He’s changed my past, my whole life…”</p><p>
  <em>“Time can be… rewritten.”</em>
</p><p>“You tell the Doctor, you tell him from me… People can’t!” Kazran stormed down the rows, towards Abigail’s pod, the holograms of the people flickering and vanishing as he walked through them.</p><p>Kazran came to a stop in front of Abigail’s pod, El reappearing next to him.</p><p>
  <em>“That’s her?”</em>
</p><p>“I would’ve never have known her if the Doctor hadn’t altered the course of my life to suit himself.”</p><p>
  <em>“Well, that’s good right?”</em>
</p><p>“No!” Kazran replied.</p><p>El looked to the ice box. <em>“Why is she still in there? You can let her out whenever you want now that you’re in charge.”</em></p><p>“Any time at all… any time I choose…”</p><p>
  <em>“Then why not?”</em>
</p><p>“This is what the Doctor did to me…” Kazran swallowed, touching the glass. “Abigail was ill when she went into the ice. On the brink of death. I suppose resting in the ice helped her… but she’s used up her time. All those Christmas Eves with me.” Kazran’s voice cracked. “I can release her any time I want… but she would only live a single day.” He looked to the girl. “So, tell me, Ghost of Christmas Present... How do I choose which day!?”</p><p><em>“…I’m sorry. I really am.” </em>El sniffled. <em>“But do you know what, she has more time than I do right now. More than anyone else here.”</em></p><p>“Good.”</p><p>El’s eyes narrowed. <em>“Will… widen the beam.”</em></p><p>Kazran’s surroundings flickered in green, the freezer room suddenly being replaced by the bridge of the <em>Thrasymachus. </em>Alarm klaxons sounded, as the ship rocked, sparks flying.</p><p>“Major update on engine one.” The Captain ordered.</p><p>“How did I get here?” Kazran demanded.</p><p>“You didn’t.” El answered, standing off to the side. “Your turn to be the hologram.” She leaned on the bridge railing behind where Will was working, fiddling with the controls in a wall panel. “Since you’re going to let all these people die… I thought you’d like to see where it’s gonna happen.”</p><p>Kazran looked around, a distant Christmas carol reaching his ears. “The singing… What is it? I don’t understand.”</p><p>The Captain hit a control on her console, the viewscreen switching on to show a view of one of the ship’s dining halls, the people inside stood up, caroling together.</p><p>“The Doctor’s idea.” Will explained, looking to Sardick. “The harmonies are supposed to resonate the ice crystals, stabilize the ship, but it isn’t working.” He turned back to the panel. “It isn’t strong enough.”</p><p>“Why are they still singing, then?” Kazran questioned.</p><p>“Because we haven’t told them.” The Captain turned around. “Mister Sardick, I understand you have a machine that controls this cloud layer.” The ship shook, struck by lightning. “If you release us from it, we still have time to make a landing. Nobody has to die.”</p><p>“Everybody has to die.” Kazran retorted. “It’s only a matter of when.”</p><p>“Not tonight.” El stated.</p><p>“Tonight’s as good as any other night… How do you choose?”</p><p>The girl shook her head. “Dad?” She held up an oversized walkie-talkie. “You hearing this?”</p><p>
  <em>“Loud and clear.”</em>
</p><p>“He’s here.” Kazran looked around. “Where is he!? Doctor?” The bridge vanished, returning to the freezer room. “Doctor!” He snarled, looking at the Time Lord across the way, leaning on one of the chambers.</p><p>“…I’m sorry.” The Doctor apologized. “I didn’t realize.”</p><p>“All my life, I’ve been called heartless.” Kazran began. “My other life, my <em>real </em>life, the one you rewrote. Now look at me.” He looked into Abigail’s pod.</p><p>“Better a broken heart than no heart at all.”</p><p>“Try it.” Kazran retorted, growling. “You try it. Why are you here?”</p><p>“Because I’m not finished with you yet.” The Doctor answered, pushing off the pod, walking over slowly. “You’ve seen the past, the present… now it’s time for the future.”</p><p>“Fine, do it, show me.” Kazran sneered. “I’ll die cold, alone, and afraid. Of course I will, we all do. What difference does <em>showing </em>me make?”</p><p>The Doctor tilted his head, keeping silent.</p><p>“Do you know why I’m going to let those people die?” Kazran asked. “Not a plan, I don’t get anything out of it, it’s just that I. Don’t. Care.”</p><p>The Time Lord crossed his arms.</p><p>“I’m not like you, I don’t even <em>want </em>to be like you. I don’t and never, ever will care!”</p><p>The Doctor leaned in by only a hair’s length. “And I don’t believe that.”</p><p>“Then show me the future.” Kazran replied. “Show me I’m wrong.”</p><p>“I am showing it to you.” The Doctor retorted. “I’m showing it to you right now…” He looked over the old man’s shoulders. “So, what do you think, Kazran?”</p><p>The old man, shakily, took a few steps around.</p><p>There he was, his younger self, standing there… horrified.</p><p>“Is this who you want to become?” The Doctor questioned.</p><p>The boy looked the old man up and down. “…dad?”</p><p>Old Kazran threw his cane to the side, pulling his arm up, snarling. In the flash of an instant, every time his father had done the same to him replayed in his mind.</p><p>The boy gasped, flinching in fear as he prepared himself.</p><p>The blow never came.</p><p>Old Kazran stood, shaking, tears falling from his eyes as he realized just what he had become. The thing he swore he’d never become.</p><p>“I’m sorry…” Old Kazran cried. “I’m so sorry… It’s okay to be frightened…” He gently placed his hands on his younger self’s shoulder.</p><p>The Doctor stood there, watching, as the two Kazrans cried.</p><p>“I’m sorry…” Kazran wept, embracing his younger self. “I’m so, so sorry…”</p><p>The Doctor slowly walked up. “Kazran.” He addressed, both looking to him. “We don’t have much time.”</p><p>--------------</p><p>“Ah!” El fell against the wall as the ship tipped.</p><p>“Structural integrity at thirty percent!” The Co-Pilot reported.</p><p>“We have five minutes, max!” The Captain yelled over the screeching metal. “We need to land, now!”</p><p>“Hello? Hello?” The viewscreen switched on. “Ah! Hello, everyone! Prepare to lock onto my signal!”</p><p>“Dad!” El beamed. “What’s happening?”</p><p>“I just saved Christmas!” The Time Lord replied. “Don’t go anywhere!” He ordered, the screen switching off.</p><p>“Dad? Dad!” El groaned. “Oh, not again!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“We good to go?” The Doctor asked, running over to the control alcove.</p><p>“The controls!” Old Kazran replied, twisting dials, flicking switches, each and every control remaining unresponsive. “They won’t respond!”</p><p>“Of course they will, they’re isomorphic, they’re tuned to your brainwaves!” The Doctor retorted. “They’ll only respond to <em>you!”</em></p><p>“They won’t respond!” Old Kazran replied.</p><p>“That doesn’t make sense!” The Doctor pushed his way into the alcove, fiddling with the machine himself. “Oh.” He realized with wide eyes. “Oh, of course. Stupid, stupid Doctor…”</p><p>“What’s wrong?” Old Kazran asked, “Tell me, what is it?”</p><p>“It’s you.” The Doctor replied. “I’ve changed you too much, the machine doesn’t recognize you.”</p><p>“B-but my father programmed it-“</p><p>“Your father would’ve never programmed it for the man you are now.” The Doctor wiped his face.</p><p>“Then what do we do?” Old Kazran asked.</p><p>“Um… um…” The Doctor stuttered. “I don’t know, I don’t…”</p><p>“There must be something!” Young Kazran piped up.</p><p>Old Kazran patted his pockets. “This. You can use this, I kept this, see?”</p><p>“What, half a screwdriver?” The Doctor inhaled. “With the other half up in the sky in the shark right in the heart of the cloud layer…” The Time Lord walked back over, taking the broken half. “If we use your aerial to boost the signal and set up a resonation pattern between the two halves-oh! That could work! It could do it!”</p><p>“Do what?” Old Kazran inquired.</p><p>“While my screwdriver is trying to repair it keeps signaling itself.” The Doctor explained. “We use the signal, but we send something else…”</p><p>“Send what?” Young Kazran asked.</p><p>“What, what, what?” Old Kazran pressed.</p><p>The Time Lord slowly turned to the old man. “I’m sorry, Kazran, but… we need her to sing.”</p><p>--------------</p><p>“Her voice resonates perfectly with the ice crystals.” The Doctor explained, the three of them standing in front of the ice box. “It calmed the shark; it’ll calm the sky too.”</p><p>“Could you do it?” Old Kazran asked. “Could you do this? Think about it, Doctor… one last day with your beloved. Which day would you choose?”</p><p>The ice box hissed as the pressure seal released, the door opening.</p><p>“Christmas.” Abigail said, stepping out, looking at the Old Kazran with a sad smile. “Christmas Day. Look at you…” She placed a hand on the old man’s cheek. “You’re so old now… I think you waited a bit too long, don’t you?”</p><p>“I’m sorry.” Old Kazran sniffed.</p><p>“Hoarding my days like an old miser…”</p><p>Old Kazran laughed slightly. “But if you leave the ice now-“</p><p>“We’ve had so many Christmas Eves, Kazran… don’t you think it’s time for Christmas Day?”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Dad!” El screamed into the comm over the screaming metal of the warping ship. “Dad!”</p><p>“We can’t hold it!” The Captain said, grasping the arms of her chair. “Time’s up! We’re going down!”</p><p>“DAD!”</p><p>The radios on the bridge crackled.</p><p>“Captain, I’ve got-“ The Co-Pilot spoke up. “I don’t know what I’ve got.”</p><p>
  <em>“…silence is all…”</em>
</p><p>“What is that?” The Captain looked to the Co-Pilot. “What are you listening to?”</p><p>“This… is coming from outside!” The Co-Pilot reached across the helm console, tapping something in. “It’s coming from the clouds!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“When you’re alone… silence is all you know…” Abigail sang into the broken sonic screwdriver like it was a microphone.</p><p>“Well?” Old Kazran inquired.</p><p>“The singing resonates in the crystals, it’s feeding back and forth between the two halves of the screwdriver now.” The Doctor explained, attaching a cord to a cord in the bottom of the broken half. “One song,” He soniced the cable with the fresh replacement screwdriver from the TARDIS, “Filling the sky. The crystals will align, and I’ll feed in a controlled phase loop and the clouds will unlock.”</p><p>Young Kazran frowned, looking to the Doctor. “Unlock?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled. “Something’s going to happen on this planet that hasn’t happened for a very, very long time.”</p><p>Old Kazran looked up, as he felt something tiny and cold land on his head.</p><p>The others looked up with matching grins, as snow began to fall.</p><p>“When you’re alone… silence is all you see…”</p><p>----------</p><p><em>“Give me your hand…” </em>Abigail sang, as the ship leveled out, flying along stable. <em>“Oh come to me…”</em></p><p>“We’re flying normally…” The Pilot breathed.</p><p>The Captain turned to him with a smile. “Can you land?”</p><p>“I can even land well.”</p><p>El shot into Will’s arms, repeatedly kissing him on all parts of his face, except the lips. “He did it! HE DID IT!”</p><p>Will blinked, face going pink as he realized what had just happened. “Um… did you just kiss me?”</p><p>The girl pulled away, crossing her arms, looking at anyone but Will. “Might’ve done.”</p><p>“…can you do it again?”</p><p>“Oh, shut up.” She lightly smacked him on the arm. Nevertheless, her hand wandered down, grasping his.</p><p>It was hard not to be happy, surviving for another day.</p><p>------------</p><p>Old Kazran looked to Abigail, awestruck.</p><p>“When you are here…” Abigail sang, looking at him. “Music is all around…”</p><p>The Doctor tapped Young Kazran on the shoulder, gesturing to the TARDIS. As they walked, children ran outside to play in the first snow for decades.</p><p>Old Kazran looked up, witnessing the shadow of the shark swimming through the clouds. “Hello, my old friend…”</p><p>The Doctor looked upon the other two with a smile. “Let’s go.” He said to Young Kazran, gently guiding him into the TARDIS.</p><p>The TARDIS thudded, the engines spinning up as the light on top flashed, blowing the falling snow all around like a blizzard.</p><p>Old Kazran waved as the timeship vanished, leaving nothing behind… except an old carriage.</p><p>------------</p><p>“You know,” El called, walking up as the Doctor did a little Eskimo kiss with a snowman, “That almost looks real. Snowman isn’t bad either.”</p><p>“Ah, yes, you two!” He looked upon Will and El. “About time. You’re still dressed like that?”</p><p>Will crossed his arms, shivering. “Not my fault someone pissed off the TARDIS. Still,” He looked at the armor, “Might keep it. Go as the Black Knight next Halloween.”</p><p>El walked up to the snowman, tilting her head. “They love snowmen here, don’t they? I’ve counted about twenty.”</p><p>“Yeah,” The Doctor turned to it, pointing pridefully. “I’ve been busy.”</p><p>The girl smiled, throwing her arms around the Doctor. “Thanks, dad.”</p><p>“Pleasure!” The Doctor replied with a smile. “Right, come on you two, let’s go!” He turned, taking the lead as they walked back to the TARDIS.</p><p>“You know,” Will tried to warm himself by rubbing the exposed parts of his armor. “I wouldn’t say no to a… Christmas tour?” He suggested.</p><p>“Christmas?” The Doctor repeated, checking his watch. “Yeah, we can do Christmas. Actually, yes!” The Doctor excitedly bounced, unlocking the TARDIS. “It’s just occurred to me that El wasn’t with Hopper long enough to celebrate Christmas, and we didn’t get around to it before Big Bang Two, so, El, how about it!” He turned to her as he pushed the door open, Will the first one to step into the ship. “Christmas on the TARDIS?”</p><p>“Yeah.” El smiled, “Great.” She waited for the door to shut behind Will, before looking to the Doctor. “This’ll be the last day they spend together, won’t it?”</p><p>“…everything’s gotta end sometime.” The Doctor sagely responded. “Else, nothing would ever get started.”</p><p>The TARDIS door was hurriedly pulled open, Will popping his head out. “Doctor, the phone was ringing. Someone named… Graham on behalf of Marilyn? Um… I-I-I didn’t really hear, but it sounded like he was implying… <em>that </em>Marilyn.”</p><p>El looked at the Doctor questioningly. “Dad?”</p><p>The Time Lord crossed his arms. “Tell them I’ll phone back… and that it was never a real chapel.”</p><p>El shook her head. “I can’t believe you… where are they?” She asked. “Abigail and Kazran?”</p><p>“Off on a little trip I should think.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“Where?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled. “Christmas.”</p><p>“Christmas.” El smiled, pushing into the TARDIS.</p><p>The Doctor’s hand rested on the door, as he looked up into the sky. “Halfway out of the dark…” He pushed in, slamming the door, as the ship began to vanish.</p><p>Far above the ground, Kazran and Abigail laughed together, riding a carriage pulled along by a flying shark through the sky.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0070"><h2>70. El's Gift</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Rockin’ around, the Christmas tree!” The Doctor sang to himself, dancing around as he hung an ornament on the fir tree picked specifically from the garden. Living on a time machine meant that things like holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries came around whenever you wanted them to. So, once the mood struck, the Doctor found himself, El, and Will prepping the TARDIS for Christmas.</p><p>The Byers boy had was beginning to warm up to things on board the TARDIS, and though he couldn’t remember the ten years of false memories, was taking a liking to El as well.</p><p>It probably had something to do with the fact that El had been responsible for saving his life in the post-Big Bang Two timeline.</p><p>But, regardless, the three were here, spending a happy Christmas decorating the TARDIS sitting room, drinking festive beverages, and generally having some laughs.</p><p>Until, that is, the Time Lord looked over to El.</p><p>The girl’s face was locked in a frown, contemplating something.</p><p>“You alright over there?” The Doctor asked, worried only just slightly.</p><p>“I’m fine.” El replied. “I mean…” She glanced at the door, Will having stepped out to go use the restroom. “I feel bad.”</p><p>“What for?” The Doctor asked, turning back to the trees.</p><p>“…I remember both histories.” El explained. “The one where you crashed in the woods and I came aboard the TARDIS then, and the other… where Mike found me.”</p><p>“Okay… and?” The Doctor prompted.</p><p>“The current timeline, the one where Will didn’t get back until I helped rescue him…” El tapped her hands together. “I stopped the Demogorgon and vanished… but Mike waited for me. 353 days.”</p><p>“Michael Wheeler…” The Doctor huffed with a smile. “The Boy Who Waited… He must’ve had quite the crush on you.”</p><p>“That’s the thing…” El awkwardly shifted. “He waited for me all that time, and I was going to go back to him… until I remembered you, remembered how things <em>should </em>be… and then I abandoned Hopper, ran off with you, and we, you know, took Will.”</p><p>“…you feel guilty.” The Doctor guessed.</p><p>“I should’ve given him a proper goodbye.” El replied. “It might be too late for that now… but maybe we could make it up to him?”</p><p>The Doctor leaned on the wall, raising an eyebrow. “What did you have in mind?”</p><p>El walked over to the small bookshelf, pulling out a little book with a train in a snowy field on the front, handing it over to the Doctor.</p><p>“The Polar Express…” The Doctor smiled, looking it over. “One of Chris Van Allsburg’s greatest, in my opinion.”</p><p>“No.” El shook her head. “Look.” She ordered, pointing to the back of the book.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyebrows shot up. “<em>Mike </em>is the one who writes it in this timeline? …I guess that means not everybody was put back into their proper places by Big Bang Two…” He turned to El expectantly. “But what does this have to do with Mike?”</p><p>“I wanted to give him a Christmas present. Something really special… an adventure.” El rubbed her hands. “No monsters, no aliens… the only danger is the stuff we make up.”</p><p>“So it looks thrilling enough for him, but it’s completely safe the whole time.” The Doctor smiled. “I like it. But there is a problem.” The Doctor held up the book. “If we’re ripping off a book, it’s not too terribly original, is it? Loads of paradox potential too.”</p><p>“Mike will probably write it when we’re done. No paradox.” El said. “And besides, you ripped off <em>A Christmas Carol.</em>”</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor spluttered. “Be quiet.”</p><p>“So,” El crossed her arms. “Can we do it?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“I’ll need to make some calls,” The Doctor said, he, Will, and El striding through the TARDIS corridors with a purpose. “I’ll need an engineer and a fireman,” He glanced to the two, “That’s covered. I can be the Conductor. But I need waiters and chefs… and someone who can convincingly play the part of a hobo.”</p><p>“Oh, oh!” El snapped her fingers. “Uncle Jack!”</p><p>The Doctor looked the girl. “You’re calling him Uncle Jack now? Good lord, this really is proof we’re living in the worst timeline…” He shook his head. “Anyway, yeah, he works. He’s a lot of things, but I can trust him around children if nothing else.”</p><p>“Are we <em>actually </em>doing this?” Will questioned. “Driving a train to the north pole?”</p><p>“I won’t be driving anything.” The Doctor retorted. “El will.”</p><p>The boy paled. “What?”</p><p>“If I put you in charge of driving the train, you’d derail us almost instantly.”</p><p>“Hey!”</p><p>“But you,” The Doctor patted El on the shoulders, “You’ve driven the TARDIS. Besides, you could use your powers to reach all the levers and things that Will couldn’t.”</p><p>“…okay, good point.” The girl conceded. “It’ll probably be easier than driving the TARDIS anyway.”</p><p>“Exactly!” The Doctor pointed.</p><p>“Okay.” Will conceded. “But where are we going to get a train?”</p><p>“Fortunately enough for us, I’ve been leading us to the exact right place to answer that question.” The Doctor said, pressing a button to open a door. “The TARDIS museum of vehicles. I used to have them all separated into categories, but I figured it’d be more ergonomic. That way I could have an extra-large LEGO room.”</p><p>“You keep trains in here?” Will questioned, looking around.</p><p>“Not just any train. Just the train we need.” The Doctor came to a stop in front of the locomotive. “Now, just a few little modifications, and we can get this show on the road!”</p><p>------------</p><p>Mike lay in his bed on the upper level of his house, just across the way from Holly, staring up at the spinning ceiling fan. He breathed slowly and silently; he did not rustle the sheets. He was trying to fall asleep as best as he could, but… Well, you couldn’t blame him for being troubled. That… box thing appeared out of nowhere, the man inside claiming he was El’s father (poor Hopper, even a blind person could see how much that had torn the man up), before taking off with her, kidnapping Will in the process.</p><p>Mike had thought it had hurt when El had ‘died…’ this was far worse.</p><p>He glanced over at the clock. Five minutes to midnight. He’d tried to go to sleep, but the feelings still ate at him, leaving him awake.</p><p>His eyes slowly began to drift closed of their own accord.</p><p>Something shook, and they snapped back open, Mike shooting up, looking around in confusion.</p><p>The lamp vibrated, clunking as something rumbled in the distance. A cup of pencils nearby the pieces of paper that he used to plan out the D&amp;D campaigns tipped off the side of his desk, spilling all over the floor.</p><p>Then, the entire room began to shake, like a mighty earthquake was tearing through the house. However, something made it quickly apparent this wasn’t an earthquake at all.</p><p>A train whistle blared, sounding like it was coming from right outside. Mike could hear the chugging of the engine, as lights spilled into the room from below, a line of train cars moving past.</p><p>There weren’t supposed to be train tracks outside. Anybody who knew even an iota of where the Wheeler house was located knew that the house was at the bottom of the street, off the cul-de-sac. The only way for a train to approach the house in the direction that it did was if the tracks went past the cul-de-sac, bending left into the woods…</p><p>Never mind the fact that train lines didn’t run through Hawkins <em>at all.</em></p><p>Mike pushed himself up, head following the beams of light as the source began to slow down.</p><p>Mike shot to his feet, jumping off his bed. Getting some slippers and his robe (which caught on one of the posts of his bed, tearing a hole into the pocket), Mike sprinted out of his room, down the stairs. Curiously enough, nobody else seemed to react. Which was typical for his father, but Nancy? His mom? Holly? Something <em>Weird </em>was going on.</p><p>Running out the front, the door shut behind him, and the ground underneath Mike’s feet rumbled as the train slowed to a crawl before it finally stopped, the metal creaking and popping as it settled.</p><p>Golden orange light spilled out from the windows on the cars, and the light on the front, as the train stood there hissing, on a track that was certainly not there a few hours ago, and from a space in the nearby woods that looked like it had been cleared especially for it.</p><p>Smoke and steam shrouded the groaning metal behemoth that was the locomotive, snow falling and flash evaporating as it hit the surface of the steam engine.</p><p>“What the hell…?” Mike quietly whispered to himself slowly approached.</p><p>The snow crunched underneath him as he walked, carefully getting close to the front of the vehicle, treating it like an animal that could snap at any moment.</p><p>There, behind the locomotive, on the side of the tender, was the name of the train, ‘<em>Polar Express,</em>’ apparently. Under the windows on the engine was the number 1225.</p><p>“All aboard!” A voice suddenly shouted from some ways behind, causing Mike to whip around.</p><p>Mike glanced at the engine and pointed at himself, eyebrows furrowing in confusion as he looked back in the direction of the man holding a lantern.</p><p>“All aboard!” The man repeated, and Mike slowly decided to walk down the length of the train, approaching the man.</p><p>Mike came to a stop, as the fog cleared around the bow tie clad man holding the lantern. He was wearing a dark purple frock coat with wool lapels, a velvet waistcoat of a similar color, and tan trousers.</p><p>Mike blinked, before he slowly began to shake with fury.</p><p>“...Well?" The Doctor questioned. "You coming?"</p><p>“You…” Mike growled. “You!”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “Not the answer I was expecting.”</p><p>“It’s you!” Mike ran into the Time Lord, hitting the man repeatedly in the chest. “You took her! And Will!”</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” The Doctor held Mike back slightly. “Mike!”</p><p>The boy’s repeated punching, almost a year of pent-up grief and a few months of anger found itself being let out, directed into the Time Lord’s torso.</p><p>“I never thought I’d see them again!” Mike screeched. “We all thought they were gone! Gone!”</p><p>“Mike,” The Doctor grabbed him, as the punches didn’t let up.</p><p>“Gone!” Mike’s punches lost steam, before he descended into tears. “I thought they were dead…”</p><p>“I’m sorry, kid, I’m sorry.” The Doctor gently whispered apologetically, as Mike shook, “But I’m here to make it up to you.”</p><p>“…what?” Mike asked through his tears.</p><p>“El had an idea.” The Doctor told him, gently pushing him away. “She realized it probably hurt you when she ran off with me and brought Will instead of you, so…” The Doctor gestured to the hissing train. “Would you like to come with us?”</p><p>The thirteen-year-old recoiled slightly. “Come where?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled. “Why, to the North Pole, of course!” The Doctor replied. “This,” He gestured theatrically to the gold letters emblazoned proudly on the side of the train car, “Is the <em>Polar Express</em>!”</p><p>“…The North Pole?” Mike incredulously repeated. “You take my best friend and my girlfriend and then ask me to jump on a train with you!?”</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor shrugged slowly. “Yeah? And besides, I don’t think she was your girlfriend before we left…” He muttered, “But never mind that. It was El’s idea. A peek into how we live our lives. An adventure! Set just around Christmas! Well, on Christmas.”</p><p>“…El wanted to do this?” Mike repeated. “For me?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. Once she’s adopted someone into her circle of friends… she’d move heaven and earth to make them happy.”</p><p>“Where is she?” Mike asked.</p><p>“Oh, you know,” The Doctor gestured up to the engine, Mike turning to move in that direction. “Ah, ah. We’ve got a long trip ahead of us, and she’s got a train she has to focus on driving. So, how about it Mike? The best Christmas gift you’ll ever get…”</p><p>Mike glanced around, and then back to his house. “How long will this take?”</p><p>“Not long. We’ll be back before midnight, certainly.” The Doctor replied, stepping onto the bottom step of the train. “Well, you coming?”</p><p>Mike debated on it for a moment. He had no idea whether or not he could trust the Doctor. Joyce, on some level, seemed to think Will was safe. For whatever reason, the woman had a set of memories belonging to a world where the Doctor had managed to rescue Will from the Upside Down a full four days before he actually returned. She realized Will was probably safe, especially if El trusted the Doctor, but that didn’t mean she didn’t worry. Everybody else on the other hand had no prior encounters with the mysterious man and couldn’t be sure if the two of them were really okay.</p><p>But… if the Doctor was the sort of being to kidnap children for nefarious means, he wouldn’t come back, and certainly not show his face to one of the friends group unless nothing was wrong. Thus, it seemed to Mike, that Will and El were truly alive, unharmed, probably even with the Doctor willingly.</p><p>So, albeit a bit reluctantly, Mike stepped onto the stair next to the Time Lord. The Doctor held the lantern out the door and waved it through the air two times.</p><p>El, up at the engine, responded with two quick puffs of the whistle.</p><p>The train lurched as the locomotive’s wheels began to move, slowly speeding up.</p><p>Snow on the ground kicked up, as the chilly wind blew into Mike’s face, as the train began to proceed. As he passed back in front of the house, Mike could see the little snowman Holly had built earlier standing there. The wind coming from the train blew up against it, causing one of the mittens to move, making it look like the snowman was waving at Mike as it saw him off.</p><p>The Doctor poked Mike in the arm, and gestured for him to follow, leading him up the steps to a green sliding door. Opening the door, the Time Lord gestured for Mike to enter first</p><p>The teenager slowly walked up, and peered into the car, as children who all looked significantly younger than him ran around, playing. He blinked, wondering just what the hell was going on here.</p><p>“I’m not the only one?” Mike questioned the Time Lord.</p><p>“Figured it would just be more disconcerting if you were literally the only one in the train.” The Doctor answered, door squeaking as he shut it. “Now, if you could just find a seat, we’ll be there in a jiffy.”</p><p>Mike looked to the Doctor questioningly. “When can I get to see El? And Will?”</p><p>“In due time.” The Doctor replied. “Now, sit please.</p><p>Mike slowly moved to find an empty seat, feeling self-conscious at being the oldest one in the place.</p><p>He sat down, and looked around, feeling a set of eyes on him.</p><p>Mike looked, at the little girl across the way, awkwardly waving under the scrutiny of such small eyes.</p><p>“Hey, hey you!” A kid wearing glasses addressed Mike, looking over the back of his seat. “Yeah, you! Do you know what kind of train this is?”</p><p>Mike blinked. “Uh…”</p><p>“Train, do you know what kind of train this is?” The kid pressed. “Well, do you?”</p><p>“Of course,” The girl spoke up for him, speaking in an English accent. “It’s a magic train.” She glanced back to Mike. “We’re going to the North Pole.”</p><p>Mike frowned.</p><p>“Oh, I know that!” Glasses replied. “Actually, it’s a Lima 2-8-4 N1-class Berkshire-type steam locomotive. Built in 1941 at the Lima Locomotive Works it weighs 456100 pounds, and has a tractive force…”</p><p>Mike let the boy get lost in his own words, as he leaned over to the girl across the way.</p><p>“I’m Mike.”</p><p>The girl smiled. “Clara. Clara Oswald.”</p><p>“Hey… you can’t actually believe we’re going to the North Pole, are we?”</p><p>“Yep!” The girl vigorously nodding her head. “We’re going to meet Santa!”</p><p>“Santa.” Mike repeated.</p><p>This just kept getting wilder and wilder.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0071"><h2>71. Hot Chocolate</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Alright ladies and gentlemen!” The Doctor announced, coming down the middle of the passenger car, holding a hole puncher up, clicking it repeatedly. “Prepare your tickets, please! Tickets!” The man came to a stop next to Mike’s seat and turned to face him. “Ticket please, Mister Wheeler.” He politely requested, bowing slightly.</p><p>Mike drew up a blank. “You just asked me to come along! You said it was a present-“</p><p>The Doctor shook his head, cutting Mike off. “Have you tried your pocket?” He suggested with a smile.</p><p>Mike rolled his eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous, there’s no tick-“ His fingers brushed up against a piece of paper in his left pocket, which he was absolutely sure was empty, and he pulled it out.</p><p>Mike stared down in befuddlement at the golden piece of paper, an image of the train stamped on one side, the words ‘POLAR EXPRESS ROUND TRIP’ on the other. A faint shimmering, like bells ringing in the distance, came from it, even as he handed it over to the Doctor.</p><p>“Thank you.” The Doctor took the ticket, beginning to punch holes up and down the paper, tiny scraps of gold paper flying everywhere, Mike waving some away before they could land in his eyes.</p><p>The Doctor blew on the ticket one last time to get rid of any scraps still clinging on and handed it back to Mike. “Here you go.” He presented it back to him, turning away, “Oi! Hands off my microphone!” He said to a kid at the front of the car, going to deal with the problem.</p><p>Mike held the up the punched ticket to the light, and his eyes narrowed. “B-E…”</p><p>“That guy sure does like to show off with his ticket punching!” The glasses-wearing boy complained, walking up to Mike, practically shoving his ticket in his face. “L-E! What the heck does that mean?”</p><p><em>“Next stop,</em>” The Doctor suddenly announced, speaking into the microphone at the front of the carriage. <em>“11344, Edbrooke Avenue, Grand Rapids, Michigan.”</em></p><p>The kid huffed, as he went back to his seat, and Mike’s eyebrows knit together in confusion. “Michigan? How did we…?” He wondered aloud, as the train began to brake, the Doctor preparing to step out.</p><p>“It’s a clever train.” Clara spoke up. “The tracks are way shorter on the inside.”</p><p>“…Huh.” Mike blinked, as the train came to a full-stop. He stood up, pulling down one of the windows, leaning out, watching the Doctor speak with the latest passenger.</p><p>He was a little boy, no more than 9 or 10 at the very most, looking up at the Doctor warily.</p><p>“Well…” The Doctor spoke to the child. “You coming?” The kid said something in response. “Why, to the North Pole, of course! This is the <em>Polar Express</em>…”</p><p>“Huh…” The glasses-kid leaned out the window next to Mike’s. “Another pick-up? The Conductor said you were supposed to be the last one.” He turned to Mike.</p><p>The little boy outside took a step back from the Doctor.</p><p>“Well, suit yourself.” The Doctor directed to the boy, stepping back onto the steps. He waved the lantern, and the locomotive sounded the whistle, the train shuddering a second later as it proceeded back on track.</p><p>The glasses boy waved flippantly, closing the window, as Mike continued looking out. His eyes locked on the kid, and for a moment, he looked back, Mike waving awkwardly in response.</p><p>The kid’s eyes locked on one of the handlebars on the outside of the carriage, and he took off into a sprint.</p><p>“He’s going to try to get on!” Mike called to the others. “Come on!” He waved for him to move. “Hurry up!”</p><p>The train began to outpace the boy, and he tripped on something, faceplanting in the cold snow.</p><p>Mike pushed himself away from the window. “How do we stop this thing!?”</p><p>“I don’t know how!” Clara admitted.</p><p>“There’s an emergency brake!” Glasses-kid pointed to a red cord on the wall.</p><p>Mike took no time, running over, jumping onto the seat, and pulling down on the cord with all his strength.</p><p>Everyone inside was sent to the floor, as metal screeched, the titanic machine coming to a stop.</p><p>“Oh…” Mike rubbed his head, standing up.</p><p>The kid from before climbed onto the train, looking into the passenger car nervously. Mike gave him what he hoped was a kind wave, and he turned away, moving into the back of the observation car.</p><p>“Stop everything!” The Doctor yelled, running into the passenger car like a chicken with its head cut off, “I’m here, I’m here, who’s hurt!?”</p><p>“Nobody’s hurt…” A kid stuttered.</p><p>“Oh, thank God.” The Doctor sighed in relief. “I was not looking forward to having to explain to the parents…” His eyebrows, furrowed. “So… Why was the brake pulled?”</p><p>“It was him!” Some snot-nosed brat at the very front pointed to Mike.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes locked on Mike, and they narrowed. “You?” He began angrily walking through the car. “In case you didn’t know that cord is for emergencies <em>only!</em>” He pointed to the cord. “And in case you weren’t aware,” He noticed the open window, and marched over to it, leaning out, “Tonight is <em>Christmas Eve!”</em> He raised his voice, waving to the locomotive. El responded with two quick whistle puffs, and the Doctor leaned back in, closing the window. “And In case you forgot,” He turned back to Mike, walking over to him, “My daughter decided to do this <em>for </em>you, and you decide to repay her by sabotaging it!?”</p><p>“But, I-“ Mike stuttered.</p><p>“He was only stopping it so that kid could get on!” Clara pointed to the observation car.</p><p>The Doctor narrowed his eyes, looking in that direction. “Hm, I see…” He turned to Mike. “Is that what happened?”</p><p>Mike nodded.</p><p>“Well then,” The Doctor straightened his bow tie. “I’m sorry. But we are on a very tight schedule, and-“ He pulled out his fob watch, eyes widening as he looked at it, shoving it back into his pocket, voice raising as he rushed back to the front of the car. “And I’ve never been late before, and I’m certainly not going to be late tonight! So, everyone, take your seats, please!” He commanded, everybody rushing to do just that. The Doctor smiled, bowing slightly. “Thank you.”</p><p>The train shuddered as it proceeded ahead, and the Doctor pulled the microphone off the wall. <em>“Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please. Are there any </em>Polar Express<em> passengers in need of refreshments?”</em></p><p>A cacophony of ‘me’ and raised hands from everyone in the room was the response.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled. <em>“That’s what I thought.”</em></p><p>The Doctor sidestepped, pulling the door open, allowing eight identical waiters in black vests and bow ties, to come running in from the car ahead, tap dancing all the while. They hit the back of some of the seats, allowing them to rotate around to face the other side, and they removed their aprons, placing them down in thin air, becoming tables for the children and lone teenager to dine on.</p><p>And then, just when Mike thought it couldn’t get any weirder, that’s when the singing started.</p><p>“Hot! Hot!” The waiters sung.</p><p>“Ooh, we got it!” The Doctor sung into the microphone, looking like he was having the time of his life.</p><p>“Hot! Hot!” The waiters snapped.</p><p>“Hey, we got it!” The Doctor danced, everybody looking on in awe.</p><p>“Hot! Hot!” A cart carrying two chefs, each one holding a large stack of plates and bowls came speeding in.</p><p>“Say, we got it!” The Doctor continued.</p><p>The waiters all jumped in unison. “Hot chocolate!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!” The waiters all produced trays from seemingly nowhere.</p><p>“Oh, we got it!” The chefs began to throw out the plates and cups, all landing perfectly nice and neat on each tray.</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“So, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Yo, we got it!” The waiters all fell to the ground in splits, before jumping back up all at once, the glassware on the trays perfectly okay.</p><p>“Hot chocolate!”</p><p>“Here, we've only got one rule:” The Doctor began, the waiters tapping their feet on the floor. “Never ever let it cool! Keep it cookin’ in the pot, Then you've got-“ The Doctor hit the high note, stepping out of the way.</p><p>“Hot choc-o-lat!” The chefs came careening back in, this time, on a cart with a large cooker on top.</p><p>With shots from the tap at the top, giant globs of hot chocolate went flying through the air, landing in the prepared cups that the waiters held, the waiters passing them out to the tables.</p><p>“Okay…” Mike mumbled to himself with a smile. “This is cool.”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Ooh, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Hey, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Say, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot chocolate!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Oh, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“So, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Yo, we got it!”</p><p>Mike looked on, smiling, as he took in the hot chocolate, just the thing he needed to warm up in the frigid winter night.</p><p>“Here, we only got one rule:”</p><p>“Here, we only got one rule:” The waiters and chefs chorused, as they all jumped onto the rolling cart.</p><p>“Never ever let it cool!”</p><p>“Never ever let it cool!” The waiters jumped off the cart, balancing on the back of each seat. “Keep it cookin in the pot,” They sung, pouring more hot chocolate from kettles into the empty mugs.</p><p>The Doctor took a breath, sliding down the middle of the aisle. “Soon, ya got hot choc-o-lat!” The waiters jumped down, spinning, as the Doctor began moonwalking backwards. “Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Hey, we got it!” The waiters jumped up onto the tables, tap dancing, as the young humans pulled the mugs and whatnot out of the way.</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Whoa, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Yeah, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Whoa, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Hey, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Whoa, we got it!”</p><p>“Hot! Hot!”</p><p>“Yeah, we got it!” The waiters all suddenly pulled away the tablecloths, standing on thin air for a moment, before jumping down, passing the kettle cart off to the chefs, before fastening the aprons back, taking the empty mugs away from the passengers, returning the seats back to the proper positions, and leaving the car with the chefs, the Doctor following after placing the microphone back on the hook.</p><p>“That was wild…” Mike commented, leaning back in his seat. He glanced over to Clara, the girl holding a mug of hot chocolate that she’d evidently hidden during the song-and-dance number, walking towards the back of the car. “Where’re you headed with that?” He inquired.</p><p>“Him.” Clara nodded in the direction of the observation car.</p><p>Mike frowned. “Are we allowed to leave our seats?”</p><p>“I’ll be fine.” Clara responded.</p><p>“She’s right.” Glasses popped up from behind his seat. “It’s a violation of railroad safety regulations for a kid to cross moving cars without a grown-up.”</p><p>“I’ll be fine.” Clara responded, going to move.</p><p>“Are you sure about that?” Mike questioned, the girl stopping.</p><p>Boots thudded against the carpet, a fob watch chain clinking, as the Doctor approached, Clara whipping around to face him.</p><p>“The young fella in the back…” The Doctor began, looking to Clara. “Did he get any refreshments?”</p><p>Clara shook her head.</p><p>“Well, what are we waiting for!” The Doctor threw up his hands. “Let’s get it to him!” He gently guided her, moving out the car. “Careful, now, careful.”</p><p>Mike looked, as the two jumped into the rearmost car, before turning back around. His eyes caught on the gold piece of paper unattended in the seat. “Hey, did the Conductor punch everybody else’s tickets?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Glasses answered. “Why?”</p><p>“Clara left hers here.” Mike got up, grabbing the ticket. “Looks like it hasn’t been punched.” He commented, moving towards the back.</p><p>“Hey, what’re you doing?” Glasses asked. “You could just wait!” He called, voice falling on deaf ears as Mike left the car.</p><p>The freezing air blew against Mike’s skin, the door of the train car clinking behind him, as he held on. Below, he could see the tracks speeding by below, and the mechanism locking the cars together. Mike held out a hand to grab onto the other car, and pull himself across, when the ticket was blown right out of his hand.</p><p>“Oh, hell…” Mike cursed. “No good deed goes unpunished.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0072"><h2>72. Do You Believe in Ghosts?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor pulled the door shut, as he and Clara came back into the passenger car. The girl took her seat, and the man proceeded along, suddenly stopping.</p><p>“Young lady, I’m terribly sorry, but I believe I’ve neglected to punch your ticket.” The Doctor addressed her, turning back. “May I?”</p><p>Clara nodded, turning to her side, stopping. “I left it here on the seat… Now it’s gone.”</p><p>The Doctor’s waiting hand fell. “You mean… You lost it? How’s that possible!? I specifically made those things so they <em>couldn’t</em> be lost!”</p><p>“It’s not her fault…” Mike confessed, standing up. “It’s mine. I was trying to get it to her before it could get taken by someone else… And the wind blew it out of my hand.”</p><p>Clara frowned, as the Doctor let out a frustrated sigh, and Mike reached into his pocket, pulling out the gold piece of paper. “Here…” Mike offered Clara. “Take mine.”</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor yanked the ticket away before Clara could take it. “This ticket,” He gestured, holding it up, “Has already been punched… You can’t give it to her.” He calmly handed it back, Mike looking slightly guilty as he took it back. “Young lady,” The Doctor turned to Clara. “Come with me, please.” He instructed, the girl getting up from her seat, the man guiding her to the rear car.</p><p>“You know what’s going to happen now, don’t ya?” Glasses leaned out, yelling at Mike. “He’s gonna throw her off the train!”</p><p>Mike jumped, whipping around. “What?”</p><p>“Yeah, he’s going to throw her right off the rear platform!” Glasses continued, standing up in his seat. “It’s standard procedure! That way she doesn’t get sucked down under the wheels!”</p><p>Oh, God… if someone was going to freeze out in the wilderness who knows how far away from home because of his mistake… Mike would never forgive himself.</p><p>Mike anxiously glanced out the window towards the rear car, the Doctor and Clara stepping out onto the platform, before he turned back around.</p><p>“They might slow down the train a little bit, but they’re never gonna stop it!”</p><p>A lightbulb switched on.</p><p>“That’s it!” Mike realized. “I have to stop the train again!”</p><p>“No, wait!” Glasses pleaded, as Mike sprinted back over to the pull cord. “Don’t do it again!”</p><p>Mike grabbed on, and he was about to pull down, before something gold and flapping in the vent caught his attention. Mike let go, and pulled it out, the ticket he had lost before now in his hands once more.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Mike ran back to the doors of the train carriage. This time, instead of trying to reach out for something to grab onto, he clutched the ticket tighter in his hand, and jumped straight across, into the rear car.</p><p>Sprinting through, Mike came out onto the rearmost platform, the Doctor and Clara nowhere to be seen.</p><p>Mike’s head darted around frantically, before he realized that the kid inside must’ve seen them. “Hey, hey!” Mike ran back over, huffing. “Did you see where they went?” He looked at Mike blankly. “Come on, please! She’s in trouble, and it’s my fault!”</p><p>The kid looked up to the ceiling, and a sudden orange glow on the rock wall outside caught Mike’s attention.</p><p>The shadows of the Doctor and Clara moved past, and then, Mike knew what to do.</p><p>Running back out to the platform, Mike grabbed onto the ladder on the side, pulling himself around and up, the wind blowing as the train narrowly cleared the rock wall, allowing the boy room to climb up onto the roof. Mike shakily stood up, to see the glow in the distance growing ever fainter.</p><p>“Hey!” Mike yelled. “Wait!” He tried to wave them down. “I found the ticket! Guys, wait! Ah, hell…” He whispered, now resigned to having to catch up to them, as the glow went dark.</p><p>Mike tried not to lose his footing as he walked on the roof of the train, feet ankle-deep in snow, as more snowflakes were blown into his face.</p><p>As Mike walked, the glow began to return, accompanied by… was that music? Out of the grey fog, Mike came up on a campfire, a hobo in a WWII coat sitting on an old wooden crate, playing an instrument of some kind, quietly singing Good King Wenceslas.</p><p>Jack suddenly stopped, acknowledging Mike’s presence, as he looked. “There somethin’ I can do for you?” He asked Mike gruffly.</p><p>“I, uh…” Mike stammered, confused. “I was looking for a girl.”</p><p>Jack suddenly broke out into uproarious, wheezing laughter. “A-Ain’t we all!?” His laugh died down to chuckles, as he began playing his instrument again.</p><p>Mike scowled. “I have her ticket…” He held it out.</p><p>“Well, would you look at that?” Jack rhetorically commented, gently taking it. “This is… This is an original, authentic, genuine ticket to ride.” He handed it back. “I’d keep that in a safe place if I were you. Don’t want it gettin’ lost.” He suggested. “Why, in fact, I keep all of my valuables… right here!” He held up his right shoe. “The ‘ol size 13. Experience shows… this is the safest place.”</p><p>Mike gave a quick nod and put the ticket safely in his slipper.</p><p>“Not that I have much use for them…” Jack continued. “Tickets.” He snorted. “I ride for free. Oh yeah.” He pointed down for emphasis. “I hop aboard this rattler anytime I feel like.” Mike raised an eyebrow. “It’s like… You know, I’m the <em>king </em>of this here train. Yeah. King, of the Polar Ex. In fact,” He held up a finger, “I am the King,” He stood up, throwing out his arms, “Of the North Pole!”</p><p>Mike coughed, as a bit of smoke from the fire entered his lungs.</p><p>Jack turned around. “Oh, I’m sorry. Where’s my manners? Sit.” He offered, handing another wooden crate Mike’s way. “Sit, sit, sit, take a load off. Would you like some joe?” He offered, taking the old kettle hanging from the small stick, pouring out some of the contents into a small cup that used to be can. “Nice, hot, refreshing beverage, perfect for a cold winter’s night.”</p><p>Mike took it, looking curiously into the cup. The liquid was jet black, and slightly bubbly. Joe meant coffee… right? Maybe he should give it back, he did have some of the chocolate from the whole song-and-dance number after all.</p><p>Still, he didn’t want to seem impolite. Not if this guy was the only one who could help him along. So, Mike swallowed his pride, and took a sip…</p><p>Immediately spitting it back out, coughing.</p><p>
  <em>Good God that stuff tasted like ass.</em>
</p><p>Jack laughed, mercifully, instead of being offended. “Yeah, lettin’ it sit in your mouth’s a real bad idea.”</p><p>Mike’s coughs died down, as Jack pulled a length of cloth, an old scarf or maybe a sock, out of the pot, ringing it out, before throwing it over the small stick over the fire. That explained the taste, at least.</p><p>“What about…” Mike struggled not to laugh, at the absurd thing about to come out of his mouth next. “Santa?”</p><p>Jack looked at her. “Santa?”</p><p>“Isn’t he the guy in charge of the North Pole?”</p><p>Jack raised an eyebrow. “You mean this guy?” He asked, producing a Santa hat, placing it on his head, before throwing out his arms. “Ho ho ho!” He began, launching into an over-the-top imitation of the holiday icon. He laughed, pulling the hat off, before shoving it back where it came from, before becoming serious. “What exactly is your… your <em>persuasion</em> on the big man, since you brought him up?”</p><p>“…I grew up.” Mike admitted.</p><p>Jack huffed, flashing a sarcastic smile. “Did you?”</p><p>“I’ve seen… shit you wouldn’t believe.” Mike granted. “But Santa? That’s too much… Even if he <em>was </em>real-“</p><p>“You don’t want to be bamboozled.” Jack finished. “You don’t want to be led down the primrose path! You don’t want to be conned, or duped, have the wool pulled over your eyes, hoodwinked, you don’t wanna be taken for a ride… railroaded!”</p><p>Jack grabbed the kettle of joe, and dumped it out onto the fire, putting it out, before grabbing up everything into a sack on a stick, grabbing the old crate he’d been sitting on, throwing it over his shoulder.</p><p>“<em>Seeing</em> is believing…” Jack whispered knowingly. “Am I right?”</p><p>Mike’s eyes narrowed. “But… what about this train?”</p><p>Jack tilted his head. “What about it?”</p><p>“We’re all going to the north pole…” Mike considered. “Right?” Despite jumping on the train, Mike actually still had no idea of the Doctor’s motives. He <em>said </em>it was a Christmas present from El, but he didn’t know whether to believe that.</p><p>“Aren’t we?” Jack parroted rhetorically. “How do you know you’re not back in that bed of yours?”</p><p>“Are you saying that…” Mike began. “This is all… a dream?” That was it, he was back in his bed, sleeping. His mind was only pulling on the Doctor’s face because it was the only person he could think of. He must’ve drifted off without thinking.</p><p>“You said it!” Jack snatched the cup from Mike. “Not me!” He gulped down the remaining liquid, before shoving the can in the sack. “So… Let’s go find that girl!” He picked up the crate Mike had been sitting on, before turning to walk away. He stopped suddenly, whipping back around, to face the frozen-in place Mike. “One other thing…” He lowered his voice. “Do you believe in ghosts?”</p><p>Mike had seen creatures from the depths of hell… But ghosts?</p><p>Mike shook his head.</p><p>Jack seemed to be considering something. “Interesting…” He turned back around, charging ahead, faster than Mike could keep up.</p><p>“Wait!” Mike called, trying to follow in the thick snow. “Wait!” Jack seemed to vanish completely, and there he was, left alone on the roof. “Wait!”</p><p>Mike huffed, the snow becoming too deep for him to wade through effectively.</p><p>“Damn it… I have to wake up!” Mike snarled to himself. “Wake up!” He smacked himself in the face. “Wake up!” He repeated to himself, practically diving into the snow. “Why can’t I wake up!?” He leaned back up, wiping the snow out of his face, as the whistle blared in the distance.</p><p>Clearing the snow out of his eyes, Mike could see a glow getting more intense as it approached.</p><p>“…Wake up!” Jack yelled, wearing a helmet lamp, skis strapped to his feet, holding ski sticks. “Get your head outta the clouds! I was joshing you when I said this was a dream! There ain’t no sleepwalkin’ on the Polar Express!” He came to a stop in front of Mike. “We gotta jump them knuckles.” He turned around, placing his back to Mike, before turning around his torso to look at him. “Come on, kid, flip my shoulder!” He held out a hand for him to grab. “Grab my lily.”</p><p>Mike, confused at the man’s urgency, took hold of his hand, and was pulled up onto his shoulders. For as large as Mike was, being a teenager, Jack was deceptively strong, holding the Wheeler boy on his shoulders, still managing to stand upright.</p><p>Jack began to walk forward, keeping his balance even on top of the snow.</p><p>“That skirt you’re chasing must’ve moved on ahead.” He guessed. “We gotta hightail it to the hog, pronto!”</p><p>“Th-the hog?” Mike asked, unfamiliar with hobo slang.</p><p>“The engine.” Jack elaborated. “The engine you tenderfoot. We gotta make the engine, before we hit Flat Top Tunnel.”</p><p>Mike looked down at the man’s face. “How come?”</p><p>Jack stopped, shaking his head. “So many questions…” He turned to look at Mike. “There is but <em>one inch</em> of clearance, between the roof of this rattler, and the roof of Flat Top Tunnel… Savvy?”</p><p>Up ahead, the engine huffed and puffed, as it began to climb up a very, very steep hill.</p><p>“This is just the run-up to the hump, kid!” Jack stated. “This’ll be interesting.”</p><p>They began to slide down towards the end of the train, Jack crossing the skis to try and stop, but they still kept sliding. A chunk of ice over the rear light broke off, flying away, revealing one of the top rungs from the ladder. Jack caught the one of the sticks in the rung bringing them to a turbulent stop, as Mike lost balance, and went flying off the man’s back.</p><p>“Get back on kid, hurry!” Jack ordered, as the train leveled out, and began to speed up. The engine disappeared over the horizon. Jack held out the end of the stick to Mike, who was hanging off the end of the train. “Grab my muck stick!”</p><p>Mike grabbed onto the stick, and in a show of inhuman strength, Jack swung the teenager around through the air, planting him on the skis in front of him. Jack placed down the handles of the sticks in Mike’s hands, and pushed off, as the train cleared the hill.</p><p>Speeding forward, they jumped the first gap between the cars, the trees and other scenery speeding by as the train charged down the hill, and then jumped the second gap. The train began to approach the bottom of the hill as they jumped the third gap, and Mike could see the entrance to the tunnel, a spiky, snarling maw of ice and rock.</p><p>They jumped the fourth gap, as Jack began to shout. “Alright kid, when I say jump…” They jumped the fifth gap. “You… JUMP!” He ordered, suddenly vanishing into nothing.</p><p>Mike allowed himself only a moment of confusion, before the proximity of the tunnel’s entrance registered, and he jumped, landing in the tender.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0073"><h2>73. The Runaway Train</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Light returned to Mike’s vision, as he rolled out of the coal, into the engine room of the train. Mike looked around, and stopped in his tracks, upon seeing Clara in the seat reaching up to a chord coming down from the ceiling.</p><p>“You!?” Mike asked, shooting to his feet. Clara jumped and turned around. “I thought you got thrown off because of me! And… Now you’re <em>driving </em>the train!?”</p><p>“They put me in charge.” Clara answered, kicking her legs. “The engineer had to check the light.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“The light, careful…” El said, reaching up for the bulb that Will held, holding onto the front of the train.</p><p>“Here…” Will held it down. “Careful…” He slipped, and the bulb went flying.</p><p>“I got it!” El jumped out to grab it, grabbing onto Will’s leg to pull herself back.</p><p>“Ow!” Will screeched.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“How!?” Mike asked, walking towards the many levers and valves.</p><p>“It’s easy!” Clara replied. “Here, I’ll show you.” She waved Mike over. “This big lever here, that’s the throttle. This little one here,” She pointed to the little gold lever, “That’s the brake. These are the pressure gauges. And this rope is the whistle.”</p><p>Mike glanced back at her. “The whistle?”</p><p>Clara nodded. “You wanna try it?”</p><p>A smile overtook Mike, as he reached up, and yanked the cord.</p><p>------------</p><p>“AUGH!” Will screamed, as the whistle went off right next to his ears.</p><p>“Hold still, hold still!” El said, feet on the front surface of the train, hand still clutching Will’s leg, as she shoved the bulb into the socket, closing the glass over it.</p><p>“El, let go of me and look!” He pointed to a speck of light in the distance.</p><p>El dropped, landing upside down, as Will slammed into the bell.</p><p>“Gah!” Will clutched his head. “This was a bad idea!”</p><p>El stared into the distance. She gasped, seeing the silhouettes in the distance.</p><p>“Stop the train!” El frantically screamed to the cabin, “Stop the train! Stop!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“What are they saying?” Mike questioned, leaning out the side.</p><p>“They want us to stop the train!” Clara recognized.</p><p>“The brake!” Mike scurried back. “Which one’s the brake!”</p><p>“This one!” Clara pointed to the little gold lever.</p><p>“Who told you that?” Mike frantically asked.</p><p>“The engineer.”</p><p>“What about this red one?” Mike asked. “It looks like a brake!”</p><p>Clara shook her head. “No, the engineer said this was the brake!” She insisted, pointing to the little gold lever.</p><p>“Are you sure!?” Mike asked. When no response came, he repeated; “Are you sure!?” The girl stayed silent, as Mike grabbed the red lever, prepared to pull it.</p><p>“STOP! THE! TRAIN!” El called from outside.</p><p>After a moment’s pause, Mike grabbed the little gold lever, and pulled it back, the train instantly shuddering in response as the wheels locked up.</p><p>The train slid to a stop, and the situation calmed.</p><p>Momentarily.</p><p>“For crying out loud!” The Doctor yelled, climbing down into the cabin from the top of the tender. “You two know we have to be at the North Pole by midnight, or-“ The Doctor stopped, wind taken out, “Oh, Clara. I’m sorry, I forgot they left you in charge.” He turned to Mike, eyes widening. “What’re you doing up here!?”</p><p>“Look!” Clara pointed outside.</p><p>The Doctor’s head shot over, and he marched over to the window, leaning out. He gasped. “CARIBOU CROSSING!?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>As the Doctor led the other two to the front of the train, Mike caught sight of the girl standing there, and his heart fluttered.</p><p>“El!” Mike exclaimed, running into her arms.</p><p>“Oh!” El gasped in surprise. “Hi. Didn’t expect to see you up here so soon… Can you let me go, it’s kinda hard to breathe.”</p><p>“Oh, right, yeah.” Mike sheepishly pulled away. “What is it?”</p><p>“Look at all of them!” El gestured out at the massive sea of caribou blocking the tracks. “There’s gotta be a million of them! It’ll be hours before we can go again!”</p><p>Will shook his head. “Didn’t realize caribou lived this far north.”</p><p>“We are in,” The Doctor grunted, coming down the steps onto the front of the train. “Some serious jelly.”</p><p>“Jam, more like.” El corrected.</p><p>“A tight spot.” Will agreed.</p><p>“Up a creek.” El continued.</p><p>“Up a tree!” Will continued.</p><p>“Lost in the grass.” El shook her head.</p><p>“I’ll tell you what’s grass, our as-“</p><p>Mike slipped, accidentally grabbing onto the other boy’s leg.</p><p>“Ow!” Will screamed.</p><p>The caribou hollered something in response, after Mike sheepishly released Will’s leg. “Sorry, Will.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, shaking his head as he placed his foot on the low railing of the front plow. “Hello, you look like an important one. Can you and your friends move out of our way please? We’ve got somewhere we’ve gotta be, pronto.”</p><p>“What’s he doing?” Mike whispered to El.</p><p>“Negotiating.”</p><p>The lead caribou replied loudly.</p><p>“I understand this is your sovereign territory,” The Doctor replied, “But you’re still standing on train tracks.”</p><p>The lead caribou screamed.</p><p>“No, we can’t just go in reverse.” The Doctor explained. “We’re expected.”</p><p>The lead caribou huffed.</p><p>“Santa Claus, of course.”</p><p>The lead caribou screeched, the ones behind it moving off the tracks.</p><p>The Doctor bowed graciously. “Thank you, your majesty.” He turned to the others. “Well, crisis averted.” The Time Lord tugged on his waistcoat satisfactorily. “All ahead, slow!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El pulled the whistle twice, as Will shoveled coal into the firebox.</p><p>“Ow…” Will painfully rubbed his leg. “I just recovered from the Mind Flayer, I didn’t need this on top of that…”</p><p>“Shouldn’t have chosen to sit on top of the engine, then.” El replied as he pulled the brake back out, setting the throttle into position with her mind, and the train began to move again.</p><p>“The Doctor said it was safe!” Will replied. “He modified this thing to be completely safe no matter what, he said, even if we jump off ourselves!”</p><p>“Safe doesn’t mean it was a good idea.”</p><p>The train passed the caribou by quickly, moving swiftly before the animals could get back in the way.</p><p>El attempted to pull the throttle back, however, the mechanism jammed, and the speed did not let up.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“I have a question.” Mike turned to the Doctor, him, Mike, and Clara standing on the front of the train.</p><p>“Shoot.” The Time Lord replied, turning to him.</p><p>“A passenger loses their ticket, so you pretend to throw them off the train.” Mike began. “Only to take them onto the roof and lead them to the engine to let them drive?”</p><p>“Well, there’s a very good reason for that.” The Doctor replied, looking at the boy. “It’s because shut up!”</p><p>The train rattled as the wind blew into their faces, trees passing by quickly.</p><p>“Uh… Are we supposed to be going this fast?” Mike asked.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, turning to Clara. “Tell the engineer to slow down.”</p><p>The girl nodded and hopped on the stairs on the side. “Slow down!” She yelled to the cabin. “Watch the speed!”</p><p>------------</p><p>El gave the throttle a mental pull with all her might, only to be sent to the floor, holding the broken throttle in her hand.</p><p>“UH OH!” She gasped. “The pin broke off the throttle!”</p><p>“What!?” Will turned towards her, the pin bouncing off his cap.</p><p>“The pin!” El repeated, as the little bit of metal recoiled off a valve.</p><p>“Where!?” He shouted, as the pin smacked against the flux capacitor.</p><p>“There!” She pointed, as the pin bounced off the floor, landing in the grate.</p><p>Will and El looked at each other. “Oh no.” They chorused each other.</p><p>------------</p><p>“They can’t hear me!” Clara turned to the Doctor.</p><p>“They can’t!?” The man anxiously asked, gulping as he read the signs not far into the distance.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>‘DANGER! 89° grade! USE LOW GEAR!’</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>“I don’t like the look of this… Quick, behind the safety bar!” The Doctor instructed, sliding into the space between the bar, and the front face of the engine.</p><p>“Is everything alright!?” Mike asked, him and Clara following the Doctor’s example. “Wh-What do we do!?”</p><p>“Well,” The Doctor pulled a strip of cloth out of his coat, tying one end on one end of the safety bar. “Considering the facts; We have lost communication with the engineer.” He gave it a tug to make sure it was secure, and pulled the other end tight, so it was pressing them up against the safety bar tightly. “We’re standing totally exposed on the front of the locomotive. The train appears to be accelerating uncontrollably.” He tied the other end, and gripped the bar, the two young humans following his example. “And we are <em>rapidly</em> approaching Glacier Gulch, which just so happens to be the steepest downhill grade in the world… there’s only one thing that we <em>can </em>do! …<strong><em><span class="u">SAY WHEEEEEEE!</span></em></strong>”</p><p>The other two screamed as the Doctor laughed, the 2200-ton train plunging into a drop like that of a Six Flags ride. They were pressed down against the floor, as the train moved back up the other end of the dip. At the top, they were suddenly thrown forward again, as the train took another plunge.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“THE PIN!” The two shouted, as it came flying out of the grate, with the inertia of the train. They jumped, flailing around in the air, trying to grab it.</p><p>El tried to catch the pin with her mind, before she caught the pin with her teeth, and the train leveled out, the girl landing back against the floor.</p><p>The train dropped again, and El gasped, as she was thrown up…</p><p>The cotter pin came careening towards her mouth. El threw up her hands, and the pin went flying out the window.</p><p>The train quickly leveled out again, but there was still a problem. No pin… no way to put the throttle back.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“OH MY GIDDY AUNT!” The Doctor shouted in alarm, spotting the lake frozen over the tracks. The ice squealed as the train came speeding out, sliding off the tracks onto the frozen water, groaning and screeching.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The pin landed prongs down in the ice, and the surface of the frozen lake began to crack.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The locomotive hit a spike of ice sticking out of the ground, and the train was sent on its side wheels, still speeding ahead.</p><p>Clara, thrown off-balance, almost fell off onto the ice, being caught just in the nick of time by the Doctor before she could fall.</p><p>Mike noticed the man’s foothold going, and quickly grabbed onto him to assist, but he began to slip as well.</p><p>Just when it looked like Mike was about to slip, and all three of them would go crashing onto the ice, something caught him.</p><p>Mike whipped around, gasping, as the hobo from before grinned at him. He was about to say something, before the man made a shushing motion.</p><p>Jack pulled them all back up, the three quickly regaining their footing.</p><p>The man grinned, pointing, before he vanished in a bolt of lightning.</p><p>“Brilliant, Mike!” The Doctor complimented. “Brilliant!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El looked anxiously out onto the ice, biting her nails, as she quickly patted each one of her pockets. Finding the right one at last, she pulled out a space cotter pin the Doctor had instructed her to grab just in case something like this happened. It floated up, throttle moving back into place as well, and she pulled it back, the train swinging around as it rolled back on the ice, coming to a stop.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The locomotive rocked, the three on the front struggling to stay on, before it hit the ice one last time, settling.</p><p>“Well,” The Doctor tugged his waistcoat. “That’s more like it.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You two!” The Doctor pulled open the hatch above the cabin. <em>“</em>What’s going on!? Are you two okay!?”</p><p>“Fine, dad…” El rubbed her head.</p><p>Something in the distance cracked, grabbing Mike’s attention. “Look!” He pointed.</p><p>The Doctor looked up, seeing the ice split. “Worry later!” He resolved, looking back down. “Just get us the hell outta dodge!”</p><p>El pulled back a lever, and the train began to move, away from the widening fissure at the highest reverse gear it had.</p><p>“Now!” The Doctor looked back in. “Turn this baby around!”</p><p>The wheels locked, and the train accordioned, the people on top staggering. Then, in what Mike thought had to be the biggest violation of the laws of physics he had ever seen, the locomotive swung around, before El pushed the throttle forward, the train proceeding away from the cracking ice as fast as it could, straightening out.</p><p>“ARE WE DRIFTING A TRAIN ACROSS A FROZEN LAKE!?” Mike shrieked, looking around.</p><p>“We’re not doing anything!” The Doctor replied. “They are!” He pointed down to El and Will.</p><p>“What’s that!?” Clara pointed at the small divide in a cliff wall in the distance.</p><p>The Doctor narrowed his eyes, trying to look. “Tracks! Nicely spotted, kid!” He beamed. “Dead ahead!” He directed into the cabin below. “Right!” He guided, the train shaking as the wheels switched up. “Left!” He called back down, the train shuddering as El did as instructed. “Right!” The Doctor instructed as the train began to drift too far to the other side again. “Hang a Louie! Toss a Ritchie! Port astern! Hard starboard!”</p><p>“QUIT TRYING TO SOUND COOL I CAN’T FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU’RE SAYING!” El bellowed.</p><p>“Whoa, my slipper!” Mike said, as the wind began to pull off his slipper.</p><p>“You’re going to lose your ticket!” Clara shouted over the noise of everything else.</p><p>“It’s not my ticket, it’s yours!” Mike responded, narrowly catching the slipper as it came flying off, and the ticket began flapping around in the air in front of them.</p><p>“It’s mine!?” Clara repeated.</p><p>“Yes!” Mike answered, the two of them trying to grab it out of the air.</p><p>“Alright, keep up with me!” The Doctor shouted down, El below pulling levers even faster now. “Left! Right! Left!”</p><p>Mike and Clara desperately tried to grab the ticket, as the train kept switching directions every few seconds, the cracking ice getting ever closer to the train.</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor ordered. “Left!”</p><p>Mike and Clara grabbed the ticket at once, the ice finally cracking, the cars in the back sinking into the water.</p><p>“Look out!” The two screamed.</p><p>The Doctor turned around, a concerned look on his face. “BRACE YOURSELVES!” He screamed, hitting the deck as the ice underneath the locomotive finally cracked.</p><p>Instead of being resigned to Davy Jones’s Locker, however, sparks flew under the locomotive’s wheels, having landed on the track just below. The train pulled itself out of the water, and proceeded along perfectly fine, away from the icy lake.</p><p>“Oh, that’s a tremendous relief.” The Doctor let out a relived sigh, as he jumped down into the cabin.</p><p>“Thank you!” Clara beamed. “Thank you so much! I can’t believe you found my ticket!”</p><p>“Excuse me?” The Doctor popped his head back out of the top like a gopher. “Did someone say they found their ticket?”</p><p>Clara nodded minutely.</p><p>“Well, in that case,” The Doctor produced the ticket puncher, clicking it. “Ticket, please.”</p><p>The Doctor took the ticket from the girl’s outstretched arm, and began quickly punching it, spitting out a little bit of scrap that had gotten in his mouth, before handing it back to her. “Thank you, ma’am.”</p><p>Clara took it back, the Doctor receding back into the cabin, as she examined the letters on it. “L-E?”</p><p>“Hey just like that know-it-all!” Mike laughed.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0074"><h2>74. The Polar Express</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Oh,” The Doctor breathed in relief, kissing El on the forehead, pulling her and Will into his arms. “You two are <em>amazing</em>!” He proudly ruffled the hair of both of them.</p><p>El laughed. “You don’t need to tell me. I know I’m awesome.”</p><p>“Sorry, cause, I’m still having trouble wrapping my head around it;” Mike rubbed his temples. “Did you drift a goddamn <em>train</em> across a frozen lake?”</p><p>“No.” El replied. “I drifted a train across a frozen lake that was breaking apart.”</p><p>“Hey, what about me?” Will asked. “Don’t I get any credit?”</p><p>El rolled her eyes, looking at Mike. “I suppose Will gets a little bit of the credit too.”</p><p>“I’ve been shoveling coal into this thing for the past three hours, damn skippy I get some credit!”</p><p>The Doctor put his hands over Clara’s ears. “Little ears, you lot, come on!”</p><p>“Sorry.” Will apologized.</p><p>“…I missed you.” Mike said to El. “Every day for-“</p><p>“353 days.” The girl adjusted her overalls. “I know.”</p><p>“…you knew?” Mike asked, a bit hurt. “Why didn’t you respond?”</p><p>“Hopper wouldn’t let me.”</p><p>“…Oh, that <em>piece of shit!”</em></p><p>“Hey!” The Doctor lightly smacked Mike on the arm. “Language!”</p><p>“No!” Mike turned back. “Don’t tell me to watch my language! He had her locked away in there for almost a year! He hid her from us! From me!”</p><p>“He was doing the right thing.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Why should you care!?” Mike shot back. “You know, for being her ‘dad,’ you’re a pretty shitty excuse for one! You leave her in the care of a strung-out cop, appear out of nowhere, then run off with her and my friend! How do I even know you’re her dad!? You could be one of those… freaks! Using her!”</p><p>The Doctor’s look got steely. “Michael Wheeler, I’m not going to raise my voice at you, or get angry… but you have no <em>idea </em>what you’re talking about, and if you insinuate anything of the sort again, I’ll throw you off this train myself, for real next time.”</p><p>“Guys,” Will stepped in, “Why don’t we all just… calm down?” He suggested. “We’ve got…” He looked to El, the girl checking a map.</p><p>“Not long now.” She replied.</p><p>“It won’t be long ‘til we get there, so how about you all hold those thoughts, and we can talk shop when this is done?” Will looked between them. “Sound good?”</p><p>Mike looked to Will, before sighing, and nodding. “Sounds good.”</p><p>“Doctor?”</p><p>The Time Lord held his hands up. “I am perfectly content to talk about this later.” He looked to Mike and Clara. “Come on, you two. Back to the passenger car. We don’t want the others to start harping about special treatment…”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The train bent, like no ordinary train should bend, as it climbed up around the outer rim of a mountain, the night moon bathing the train and the snow around it in a heavenly glow, almost as if the train itself was a chariot of the gods.</p><p>“Watch your step, watch your step.” The Doctor warned as they walked on the top of the tender. “It’s tricky walking up here, it’s slick, slickety, slick!”</p><p>Mike screamed, as he suddenly slipped, about to fall off the side, before the Doctor grabbed him, pulling him back up.</p><p>“There we go! What did I tell you?” He rhetorically asked, once Mike’s feet were planted.</p><p>Mike looked to the Doctor, swallowing his pride and his outburst from earlier. “Thanks.”</p><p>“You know what, it was my first run on this train…” He regaled the other two.</p><p>“First run?” Mike repeated. “You’ve done this before?”</p><p>“Well, no. But I was on this train and it was icy, so same difference. I was up on the roof, making my rounds, when I slipped on the ice myself! I reached out for a hand-on, but it broke off, I slipped and fell, and yet!” He pointed, setting foot onto the ladder on the back of the tender, looking the other two dead in their eyes. “I did <em>not </em>fall off this train.”</p><p>“Someone saved you?” Clara asked.</p><p>“Or some<em>thing.</em>” The Doctor corrected.</p><p>“…An Angel.” The girl guessed.</p><p>“…Maybe.” The Doctor granted, beginning to climb down.</p><p>“Well, what did he look like?” Mike asked, frantically climbing down after the Doctor, guessing that the same kind hobo who’d saved them before was also the one who ‘saved’ the Doctor. “Did you see him?”</p><p>“Not at all!” The Doctor replied, handing Mike his lamp as he helped Clara down from the ladder.</p><p>“Then… how’d you know something was there?” Mike responded.</p><p>“Welp, seeing <em>is </em>believing, but sometimes, the most real things in this universe, are the things we can’t see.” The Doctor offered his wisdom, taking the lamp back. “I’d like to see someone argue with me about gravity on that front…” He mumbled, opening the door to the next carriage.</p><p>------------</p><p>After passing through the kitchen car, then the dining car, they came up on a car stuffed to the brim with what looked like junk toys.</p><p>“Ah, the forsaken, and the abandoned…” The Doctor quietly said, almost mournfully. “Watch your step, you two, these… these poor toys have suffered enough, being left to rust and decay in the back alleys and vacant lots of the world.” He took great care to step over the old, junked toys, treating them with the same respect as one would treat the dead.</p><p>“What are they all doing here?” Mike asked, looking at an old tinker toy lying on the seat.</p><p>“It’s something the big man came up with.” The Doctor answered. “Instead of making all new toys, we gather up the old ones the ungrateful kids of the world treat like trash, and we fix ‘em up, good as new, to be given to another kid, hopefully one that would be a lot kinder to it. Why, there was this one dollhouse that I’m proud of… Bigger on the inside! My handiwork.”</p><p>“It makes me want to cry…” Clara picked up a doll that looked like it’d been buried out in the dirt. “Seeing toys that’ve been treated this way.”</p><p>“Ah, but that’s the thing. Some people, they just don’t care.” The Doctor sighed. “All they see from Christmas is a day of free stuff… But, that’s why we do this.” The Doctor continued, turning back around. “For every bad egg in the world… There’s another, who despite everything that has been thrown at them, is absolutely deserving of a little bit of good faith.” He let out a grunt as he ducked under an old puppet hanging from the ceiling. “These old string puppets and marionettes pose a particular problem. But, Santa found that the tiny fingers of his workforce at the old North Pole was perfect for getting out all the knots and tangles, hold this.” The Time Lord asked, handing the lamp off to Mike. “Thank you.”</p><p>“So, Santa Claus is real?” Mike skeptically asked.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at him as he tried to pry the door. “And now you know why we went on the roof instead of just going through the cars…” He muttered as the door stuck. “But yes, of course he’s real.”</p><p>“Bullshit.”</p><p>“Excuse me?”</p><p>“If Santa Claus is real, then why don’t the parents get suspicious about presents appearing overnight without them doing it?” Mike questioned.</p><p>“Because,” The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Santa doesn’t leave gifts for <em>every </em>child, every year. He rotates out the list, gives one or two, then it’s up to the parents to pick up the slack.” The door finally slid open, and the Doctor took the lamp, walking through.</p><p>The three jumped the gap into the passenger car, moving through.</p><p>“Hey, you missed it!” Glasses jumped out of nowhere. “We rode down some really sharp hills! And then we were on what looked like a frozen lake,” Mike looked to Clara and the Doctor, the two suddenly having vanished like Batman. “But I know it was just an optical illusion caused by moonlight and atmosphere!” Looking around, Mike searched for either one of the two. “He said the train was actually on the ice, but I said that was impossible! Because you can’t put train tracks-“ Mike saw the girl standing with the shy little boy from earlier in the observation car and decided to investigate. “Hey, where’re you going now!?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Mike stepped into the observation car, and Clara, who noted his arrival, motioned for him to keep it down. The shy boy was on the rear platform, staring up into the night sky, and singing to himself despondently.</p><p>The shy kid stopped, and Clara picked up the next verse, the boy turning around, surprised. Mike didn’t catch the full thing, but, in short, it seemed to him that the shy boy shared a depressing opinion about Christmas, and Clara was the opposite, singing about the holiday’s positives, the people coming together, not merely for presents, but to be together, rejoicing that they’d made it through another year…</p><p>…he did have to admit, it was a good song. But what was it about this train that caused people to belt out into song?</p><p>Clara gasped, as ribbons of glowing green, blue, and pink particles streamed in the sky. “Look!”</p><p>“The Northern Lights!” Mike recognized, running out onto the platform to get a better look.</p><p>“Aurora Borealis!” The Doctor came striding into the car. “You three, we’ve just crossed it! Latitude 66 degrees, 33 minutes, the Arctic Circle!” He came to join them on the platform. “And do you see?” He turned, pointing at something far, far away in the ice. “Those lights in the distance… They look like the lights of a strange ocean liner, sailing on a frozen sea… There…” He turned back to them with an excited smile, as up ahead, the train did a sharp turn, whistle blowing as it headed directly toward the lights. “Is the North Pole!”</p><p>Clara looked like she was ready to jump up and down, and even Mike found an excited gasp exiting his mouth.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Up in the locomotive, El released the pull cord for the whistle with a smile on her face as she turned to Will. “Ready?”</p><p>“…I’m not doing it.”</p><p>“Come on!” El hopped. “Please?” She begged.</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“But you promised!”</p><p>Will looked at her and sighed. Hard to resist the person who saved your life. “…augh! Fine! But you’d better not be recording this!”</p><p>“I’m not.” El smiled mischievously. She took a deep breath, and waited for Will, before both of them broke out into song.</p><p><em>“She’s a magic carpet on a rail</em>, <em><br/>Never takes a rest!<br/>Flying through the mountains and the snow,<br/>Ride for free and join the fun,<br/>If you just say yes!<br/>'Cause that's the way things happen,<br/>On the Polar Express!”</em></p><p>The Polar Express huffed and puffed as it chugged down the winding, brick path to the North Pole, the great many lights of the city shining like a beacon in the frozen tundra. The whistle blared loudly as the train took the bend, signaling those in the city of its approach.</p><p>
  <em>“Wooo wooo the whistle blows,<br/>That's the sound of her singing!<br/>Ding ding the bell will ring,<br/>Golly look at her go!”</em>
</p><p>As the train passed into the North Pole proper, the children inside (including Mike, for though he wasn’t strictly a child, he felt as giddy as a little girl upon seeing his surroundings) excitedly darted around, looking at the brickwork and arches that appeared to belong to an old train station.</p><p>
  <em>“You wonder if you'll get there soon,<br/>Anybody's guess!<br/>'Cause that's the way things happen,<br/>On the Polar Express!”</em>
</p><p>The train came to ground level, whistle blowing as it proceeded down the streets of the North Pole, towards what could only be assumed to be the town square.</p><p>
  <em>“When we get there we'll scream, ‘Yay!’<br/>We'll arrive with a bang bang bang,<br/>Boom boom boom,<br/>Laughing all the way!”</em>
</p><p>“We made it!” The Doctor laughed, leaning out of the side of the train. “Five minutes to go, and we made it!” He pumped his fist triumphantly. “HA! Ha ha!” He looked around, a big grin on his face, as he stepped back inside.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“There should be elves…” Clara muttered, looking out the window. “Where are all the elves?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Mike wondered. “Where are they?”</p><p>“They are gathering in the center of the city.” The Doctor answered, stepping back into the car. “That is where Santa will give the first gift of Christmas.”</p><p>“Ooh!” Glasses kid shot up. “Who gets the first gift of Christmas!?”</p><p>The Doctor looked around. “He’ll choose one of you.”</p><p>“Look!” A little girl pointed out the window, as the train began to slow down.</p><p>“Elves!” Another hollered.</p><p>Outside the train, a legion of elves, what must have been hundreds, thousands, the entire population of the city, all marched in the same direction, some doing twirls, others doing cartwheels, as they moved into the square.</p><p>So many elves, in fact, the train slowed to a crawl, moving at the same speed as Santa’s helpers.</p><p>When the Polar Express could go no further, it came to a full stop, the whistle blaring loudly.</p><p>--------------</p><p>“All right, ladies and gentlemen, two columns if you please!” The Doctor instructed, leading the children off the train. “Shorter in the front, taller in the rear…”</p><p>Mike looked around in childlike wonder, unable to believe he was <em>actually </em>at the North Pole. Whatever his mind was cooking up… it was amazing.</p><p>“Even numbered birthdays on the right, odd numbered on the left. No pushing!” The Doctor evidently chided someone. “No pushing, but let’s not dilly-dally, it’s five minutes to midnight!”</p><p>“Hey, what gives!?” Glasses demanded. “It was five minutes to midnight four minutes ago!”</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, pointing at the boy. “Exactly!” He walked over to Mike and Clara. “Columns of two, one, two.”</p><p>“Excuse me?” Clara asked.</p><p>“Yes?” The Doctor tilted his head.</p><p>“What about him?” Clara asked, pointing to the boy in the observation car.</p><p>The Doctor glanced over quickly and looked back. “No one is <em>required</em> to see Santa.” He turned around, walking back to the front of the line. “Ladies and gents, you don’t have to hold hands, but stay together! I don’t want to have to explain to your mums and dads why their kids are lost at the north pole!”</p><p>Clara turned to Mike. “Come on!” She motioned for him to follow, running back over to the train. She climbed up first, and Mike followed.</p><p>The boy’s foot slipped, slamming against a metal bar that gave way, but he quickly recovered, going to join Clara.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0075"><h2>75. Lost at the North Pole</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Look,” Clara huffed, running over to the quiet boy, “Look, you have to come with us.”</p><p>Mike nodded in agreement. “She’s right.”</p><p>The boy looked downcast. “Christmas just… doesn’t work out for me… It never has.”</p><p>“But Christmas is such a wonderful, beautiful time!” Clara insisted. “It’s about giving and being thankful! People hang up decorations and lights… And then Santa comes and puts presents under the tree!”</p><p>“It just… Doesn’t work out for me.”</p><p>Mike looked between the two. “Look, I don’t know if Christmas works out for you or not, but this is Christmas Eve, and you’re at the North Pole of all places!” Mike sided with Clara. “Don’t stay here by yourself!”</p><p>Clara nodded. “Yeah, come with us… We’ll all go together.”</p><p>The boy looked between them.</p><p>Suddenly, the car shook, and the lamps inside all went out.</p><p>Mike looked to the door, and ran over, pulling it open. They were rolling away from the train, fast. Mike cursed to himself, as he realized he must’ve hit the lever for the coupling mechanism.</p><p>“Aw, crap.” Mike turned around, running to the platform, the two children following. “Alright, guys, just stay calm…” He tried to tell them, as the car rolled through a tunnel. “Everything’s going to be fine.”</p><p>The car rolled over a sensor on the track, and it buzzed, as the track up ahead switched.</p><p>“Alright, I lied!” Mike admitted, as the car began speeding down a sharp, curved decline. “The brake!” Mike frantically looked around. “Where’s the brake!?” He left the two at the front, pulling himself back through the car, “I can’t find a brake!”</p><p>Something clinking outside grabbed his attention, and he poked his head out, looking towards the wheel on the side, and the mug clanging against it.</p><p>“Take a <em>break </em>kid!” Jack laughed, sitting on the corner of the roof. “How ‘bout a nice, good hot cuppa joe?” He poured some out into the mug, the liquid spilling, before he threw it back.</p><p>Suddenly, Jack vanished into nothing, as the train sped into another long tunnel, the metal kettle and cup falling to the ground.</p><p>-------------</p><p>Mike began turning the brake wheel, the wheels underneath sparking as they ground against the track, lighting up the tunnel.</p><p>“We’re gonna crash!” Clara screamed from the front as they came out of the tunnel.</p><p>Mike began running back inside, before the car hit something, and all three of them were thrown to the floor.</p><p>Mike staggered to his feet, balance shifting all over the place as momentum threw him around. “We’re spinning!?”</p><p>The spinning finally slowed enough for the three to balance out fully, and Mike looked out. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding.”</p><p>Mike wasn’t too familiar with railroad terms, so he didn’t know the exact name to call the place, but the car had stopped in a junction, six bridges extending out evenly from the central platform, frozen waterfalls flowing from waterways on each wall of the hexagonal room.</p><p>“Did you guys see which one we came down?” Mike asked, over the echoing voices of the Andrews Sisters singing Winter Wonderland.</p><p>“No.” The shy kid tried to speak up.</p><p>“Shh.” Clara instructed. “…You guys hear that?” Her eyes widened. “The bells!” She recognized, jumping down onto the platform.</p><p>“What bell?” Mike asked, following.</p><p>“The sleigh bells!” Clara replied like it should’ve been obvious. “It’s coming from that tunnel!” She pointed to one of the walls. She ran over to the bridge, Mike and the boy following, before they stopped.</p><p>To call it a bridge was perhaps doing it too big a service. It was just two rails, extending across the pit, a hollow space in the middle. It was a health and safety lawsuit of apocalyptic proportions waiting to happen…</p><p>Oh, wait, they were at the North Pole, so OSHA standards didn’t apply.</p><p>“That’s the way we should go.” Clara stated, stepping on the rail.</p><p>“Uh, are you sure about that?” Mike asked.</p><p>Clara shot him a look.</p><p>“I mean, about the rail.” Mike said. “Put your feet on the concrete, what little there is, they won’t slip that way.”</p><p>Clara looked sheepish for a moment, like she hadn’t considered that, before she did so, and took charge across the pit.</p><p>-----------</p><p>After about thirty minutes of walking, the rails began to taper off as they reached the end of the tracks, once more on solid ground thank the Lord, the three running through the streets of the North Pole. The buildings were extremely tiny, Elf proportioned, making the three feel like giants.</p><p>“Come on.” Clara motioned, as they ran through the cramped streets, to a small doorway at the end.</p><p>The three came to a stop, and Mike looked around, as Clara peered closer into the nearby tunnel. “We’re lost.” Mike said, peering into one of the windows.</p><p>The building was vacant, a record playing Silver Bells for no audience. The needle began to skip, and Mike shook his head.</p><p>“Yes…” Clara suddenly said, Mike whipping back to look. “Yes… Okay, it’s down this way!” She pointed into the tunnel, walking forward again.</p><p>Mike crossed his arms. “Are you sure?”</p><p>The girl stopped, turning around seriously.</p><p>Clara nodded, all business. “Absolutely.” She said, before charging into the tunnel.</p><p>Something was starting to seriously bug Mike as they descended down the cramped stairwell. Clara was only leading them down this path because she was hearing bells, something the shy kid heard too… But Mike?</p><p>“Why am I not hearing anything?” Mike asked.</p><p>“Shh!” Clara hushed her, as they emerged out the other end.</p><p>Mike’s jaw dropped, as they entered a room that looked like a cross between Grand Central Station and a Mission Control NASA would dream up. A massive pillar, screens on every face, stood in the center of the room, above a gigantic map of Earth set into the ground. The place was mostly empty, but as they crawled forward, it looked like there were some Elves still manning it.</p><p>A phone rung, the bells sounding like Christmas bells. Mike snorted; it was oddly appropriate.</p><p>“Yeah?” The Elf manning the phone spoke to the being on the other end. “Uh huh. Uh huh. Uh huh. Okay!” The Elf placed the phone back in the cradle. “Well, that was the wrapping hall, Chief. They just finished the last one!”</p><p>The Chief of the place, an Elf wearing a Napoleonic hat, holding an enormous candy cane, paced over, leaning. “How’s it wrapped?” He inquired.</p><p>“It's wrapped in candy-striped red with a number-seven Clara-green bow.” The Elf answered.</p><p>“A number <em>seven</em> bow!?” The General repeated. “When we’re <em>this</em> close to liftoff!? What are they thinking down there!? Are they meshugganeh!?”</p><p>Mike tried not to focus on the Elf’s almost comical Jersey accent, as he looked at the array of screens, each one showing a child from across the world, most in bed tucked away for the night. That was creepy.</p><p>“What’s the routing!?” The General demanded.</p><p>“Going to the States.” The Elf attending a list reported. “Grand Rapids, Michigan.”</p><p>The shy boy gasped. “That’s my town!”</p><p>An alert klaxon began to sound.</p><p>“We got a troublemaker now, just what we need!” The General threw up his hands as the map below the screens moved to highlight the location. “Things aren’t bad enough!” He pointed to an Elf at what looked like a computer terminal. “What’s his 20?”</p><p>“Apparently, some kid from Maplewood, New Jersey...” The Elf attending the terminal reported. “...stuck some gum in his sister's hair!”</p><p>“New Jersey?” The General turned. “Is that the same kid that put the tack underneath his teacher's chair last year?”</p><p>“No, sir.” The other Elf reported. “This kid's name is Steven.”</p><p>“Steven… Steven…” The General repeated, eyes widening. “WE TALKIN’ MOFFAT!?”</p><p>“New Jersey, sir.” The Elf stated. “Not Scotland.”</p><p>The General let out a relieved sigh. “Oh, thank the maker.”</p><p>“So, what do we do, chief?” A different Elf asked. “Alert the big man? We talking nothing for Christmas here?”</p><p>The General seemed to consider something for a moment, before picking up the phone.</p><p>One of the screens highlighted, showing the Steven in question repeating that he didn’t do it, looping.</p><p>“Look, it’s almost Christmas, eh?” The General put the phone back down. “We’ll cut the kid a break… But!” He pointed. “You put him on the check-twice list for next year!” He raised his voice. “All right, boys! Let's shut it down, all right! That's it for this year! Come on!”</p><p>The five Elves turned away from their stations and began marching in unison towards a glass tube on one side of the chamber.</p><p>“Hey, boss, are we taking the pneumatic?” An Elf asked.</p><p>“Of course, we’re taking the pneumatic!” The General answered. “It’s the only way to get to the square on time!”</p><p>Clara turned to the other two, motioning. “Let’s go.” She instructed quietly.</p><p>“Ready, and…” The General told the Elves following him. “Mount!” All at once, they vaulted over the side, into the canister inside the tube. The General hit a button on the inside, and the cover closed, the canister inside speeding away, before another took its place, the cover opening once again.</p><p>The three proceeded up the stairs to the pneumatic transport, stopping, looking at it apprehensively.</p><p>“Alright, let’s get in.” Clara drew a breath, sitting down inside.</p><p>“Oh, I don’t know about this…” Mike muttered, squeezing into the back.</p><p>Clara hit the button, and they shot off, being thrown around by the forces inside.</p><p>They suddenly stopped, and the door opened, the three stepping out not into the massive gathering they were expecting, but what looked like a massive assembly line solely for gift-wrapping presents, patterned paper and bows hanging from the walls.</p><p>“I don't hear it.” Clara stated quietly, almost disappointed. “Do you?”</p><p>The lonely boy waited for a moment, before shaking his head. “No.”</p><p>Mike took a quick look around for any other exit. Taking the pneumatic again was an option, but it could spit them out anywhere. Thus, the teenager pointed to the conveyer belt below. “I think we should follow those arrows.”</p><p>Jumping along the belt, the three passed through the tunnel into the next section, coming to a stop.</p><p>Inwardly, Mike cursed. “Darn,” He figured that the place was shipping, and shipping meant a loading dock, which meant an exit. “I thought there'd be a way out.” Instead, there were more, smaller conveyers all leading onto the center one, and two platforms that looked barely large enough to hold them.</p><p>Clara threw out her hands despondently. “We’re gonna miss everything.”</p><p>A buzzer sounded, and all the mechanisms in the room engaged, the three scrambling onto the stationary platforms off the line.</p><p>Next to Mike, a box enveloped in white and red stripes with a green bow came down a lift, “Hey, look. A present. It's going to Michigan. To someone named Billy.”</p><p>The lonely boy on the platform opposite Mike and Clara gasped. “My name is Billy!”</p><p>Clara leaned closer to the present, reading off the gold tag as it began to roll down the belt. “It's going to 11344 Edbrooke Avenue.”</p><p>Billy gasped harder. “That's my address!” Billy’s eyes followed the present as it passed him, and he looked back at the two girls, before jumping onto the belt after it, grabbing on as both proceeded down the line.</p><p>“Billy, no!” Mike yelled, charging after him. He hit the belt, passing through the same plastic streamers or whatever separating the sections from the line.</p><p>Mike’s hands began to feel weird, before he realized. He wasn’t on the belt anymore.</p><p>He was sliding.</p><p>“Whoa!” Mike screamed, plunging down one slide in a massive network, filled with other slides all feeding into the room. At the very center, what looked like a metal funnel led somewhere below.</p><p>It was all Mike could do to fight his own momentum, trying not to fall out of the slide, as Billy’s yells in front, and Clara’s screams from the back, echoed all around.</p><p>They all reached the bottom of the slide, sliding around the smooth, curved metal of the enormous funnel. They began spinning around, as they hit the bottom, falling through the hole.</p><p>Mike let out a gasp, as he landed not long after...</p><p>Onto a gigantic pile of presents that would make a building green with envy. There certainly weren’t enough gifts to go to every child in the world, but that made sense… One or two for a select few, just like the Doctor had said. That way, the parents of the world wouldn’t get suspicious.</p><p>“Look!” Billy called, sitting just a little bit further down, looking over his present.</p><p>Clara smiled, leaning over, pointing at the tag. “It says ‘Merry Christmas, Billy. From Mr. C!’”</p><p>“I think I know what it is!” Billy shook the box, the contents rattling. “I’ve wanted one of these my whole life!”</p><p>“Wait, wait, wait!” Clara’s hand shot out, before Billy could pull off the bow, and begin unwrapping it. “Stop!” She regrettably pointed to another gold sticker on the side. “Look…”</p><p>“’Don’t open until Christmas.’” The sticker read.</p><p>“But… But…” Billy stuttered, looking like someone had just kicked a puppy in front of him.</p><p>Mike placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Those <em>are</em> the rules.”</p><p>The three huffed, momentarily being shook up, as the massive pile began to roll elsewhere, clattering.</p><p>A few seconds later, it stopped underneath a curved roof, a target painted on top, with a hole in the center.</p><p>The three looked around in confusion, ducking as four rockets came shooting out from the bottom, passing through the hole in the roof, pulling out what looked like aircraft cable along the way.</p><p>A few seconds passed, as what sounded like a helicopter approached, and the roof began to slowly open.</p><p>The three looked around, as red cloth was pulled up, over the edge of the pile. The roof began to move down, as Mike realized…</p><p>This wasn’t just a stack of presents, it was Santa Claus’s toy bag. And it was being airlifted to his sleigh.</p><p>A blimp, two balloons held together with a metal frame in the center and propellers at the back, lifted the sack out, straight up into the air.</p><p>Mike, Clara, and Billy pulled themselves up to the rim of the enormous bag, all looking around in wonder as they got a view of the North Pole from above, the zeppelin flying over the cityscape, towards the center of the city, golden glimmering lights shining like a monument.</p><p>Smoke billowed from the chimneys below, glowing green slightly as the roofs below passed, the bag on a direct course for the town square.</p><p>“Augh!” Billy cried, as he suddenly fell back down into the bag.</p><p>Mike and Clara turned around, concerned, Mike quickly grabbing onto the boy’s hand.</p><p>“Something’s got me!” Billy tried to kick whatever it was. “It’s got my leg!”</p><p>“I can’t hold him!” Clara shouted.</p><p>“Give me your other hand!” Mike ordered.</p><p>Billy glanced at his gift, and then back to him. “I-I can’t.”</p><p>“Oh, for crying out…” Mike muttered under his breath. “Okay,” He turned to Clara. “On three. One, two, three!”</p><p>Mike and Clara pulled at once, Billy moving up slightly, before he was pulled right back down.</p><p>“It’s still got me!” Billy hollered.</p><p>“On three again!” Mike ordered. “One, two, three!” He pulled once more, putting all his strength behind hit, as Billy came up…</p><p>Along with someone else.</p><p>“You!” Mike pointed at four-eyes.</p><p>“You!” Glasses retorted.</p><p>“What are you doing here!?” Clara demanded, pointing.</p><p>“Same as you!” Glasses retorted. “I’m checkin’ out my Christmas presents! I wanted to make sure I got everything on my list! All I found was one present, and all it had was a bunch of stupid underwear!”</p><p>Mike shook his head, turning around. His eyes widened, jaw dropping. “Look…” He said to the others, pointing at the truly skyscraper-sized Christmas tree at the center of the North Pole.</p><p><em>“You may start your descent at any time now.” </em>An Elf with a posh British accent called over a megaphone. <em>“At your convenience, of course.”</em></p><p>The zeppelin began to make its descent, as teams of Elves on the top of each balloon began to let out some of the air inside.</p><p>Clara glanced over at a clock in the square. “Hey, it’s still five to! We’re gonna make it!”</p><p>Glasses scoffed, waving his hand. “It’s been five to for the past hour! We’ve got plenty of time, we’ve got nothing but time, we’ve got time to kill!”</p><p>Mike gulped, as the bag looked to be getting dangerously close to the gigantic tree topper. “You know what? …I don’t think we’re gonna make it!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0076"><h2>76. Meeting Santa Claus</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor cupped his hands, looking up to the blip ferrying the enormous bag. “I may be just an old Time Lord,” He shouted for all to hear, “And know very little about any sort of vehicle that’s not my TARDIS, but from my layman’s perspective… YOU NEED MORE ALTITUDE!”</p><p>“MORE ALTITUDE!” The Elves all around chanted in agreement.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“<em>Altitude please!”</em> The flight controller instructed. <em>“A bit more altitude please!”</em></p><p>The four looked up, as some of the Elves on the zeppelin began making a commotion.</p><p>“Geronimo!” They yelled, jumping down from the metal skeleton on the zeppelin.</p><p>With that extra weight gone, the airship and the bag shot up.</p><p>------------</p><p>The kids and the Elves below looked up in wonder, as the Elves from the zeppelin made a snowflake formation, and popped their parachutes, coming in for a landing.</p><p>“The Flying Elves!” The Doctor remarked, as one passed over his shoulder. “They’re professionals, kids, don’t try this at home. Seriously, don’t.”</p><p>But, for all the relief, something was still wrong.</p><p>------------</p><p>“We’re not gonna make it!” Mike realized, as the bag pushed into the top point of the tree topper.</p><p>The gargantuan glass star tipped off, flickering off as it began to fall, the Elves below shrieking in alarm.</p><p>A horn sounded twice from overhead, and four Elves attached to cords jumped down, speeding after the star. Maneuvering skillfully through the air, each one grabbed onto a point, clutching on, and narrowly slowing its descent before it could smash into the ground.</p><p>The topmost tip of the star poked the nose of an elf on the ground below, just slow enough not to cause any harm.</p><p>The four Elves were pulled back up post-haste, wasting no time placing the star back.</p><p>The toy bag passed by the tree, and hovered into position over Santa’s sleigh, the cables being released for the bag to drop onto the back.</p><p>The four inside the bag looked up, as the zeppelin retreated into the night.</p><p>“Alright you stowaways,” An Elf looked over the rim of the bag. “Party’s over!”</p><p>“I was just following them!” Glasses was quick to shift the blame.</p><p>“It was a mistake!” Mike tried to defend.</p><p>The Elf with the moustache and beard waved it away. “Ah, fuhgeddaboudit. We knew you was in there the whole time!” He spoke like he’d just gotten done inhaling a whole tank’s worth of helium. He offered a hand to help them out. “Come on, out you go.”</p><p>“So that nobody gets hurt, here’s how we’re gonna get you guys down.” The first Elf began as soon as all four were standing on the outside of the bag.</p><p>“Ah, this is simple.” Glasses pushed in front of Clara. “Why I know-“</p><p>“What do you know?” The Elf standing on the shoulders of his colleague rhetorically asked, hands now on hips. “You’re not supposed to be here in the <em>first place</em>. But… Since it’s Christmas…” He grinned. “I’m gonna let you slide!”</p><p>One of the other Elves kicked out Glasses’s legs, sending the boy sliding down the side of the bag, to the ground below.</p><p>The boy landed on his feet, right at the feet of the Doctor.</p><p>“We’ve been looking for you.” The Doctor gestured him over to the other children.</p><p>Clara smiled, taking the plunge next with excited confidence.</p><p>The Doctor bowed with a smile as she landed. “Nice to see you again.” He ushered her over to the others.</p><p>Then, came Mike, taking the slide down as well.</p><p>“Cutting it a bit close,” The Doctor crossed his arms with a rhetorical grin, “Aren’t we?” He led him over to the rest of the group from the train, looking on as Billy seemed reluctant to part with his gift.</p><p>Finally, the Elf seemed to get through to him, and Billy came sliding down, joining the others, as the Elves tied the bag shut.</p><p>-----------</p><p>A conductor Elf struck up the band, and they began playing fanfare, announcing finally that the main event had begun.</p><p>“Look!” Clara pointed over the crowd of cheering Elves, as they began leading reindeer, <strong><em><span class="u">THE</span></em></strong> reindeer out towards the sled, the Elves struggling slightly to keep the rowdy animals under control, as the crowd began to sing a Christmas carol Mike hadn’t heard before.</p><p>The Elves wrangling the reindeer led the magic animals into position, the band playing the opening bars of the fanfare again, pausing as another team of Elves carried out a harness with silver bells sown on.</p><p>With a drumroll, the Elves carrying the harness began to shake it…</p><p>And absolutely nothing happened.</p><p>Mike recoiled in confusion, as the crowd cheered.</p><p>Thinking it a fluke, Mike listened even closer, as the concert hit another pause, and the harness was shaken again.</p><p>Still… nothing.</p><p>The Elves marched up to the reindeer, bells shaking all the while and yet, producing no sound, before the Elves threw it on.</p><p>“Isn’t that the most wonderful sound?” Clara asked with a giant smile, as the band played the opening bars of the fanfare again, going completely silent.</p><p>“OOOOOHHHH!” The Elves sung. “You’d better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I’m telling you why. Santa Claus is coming… to town!”</p><p>The doors on the far side of the square opened, a long shadow falling over the plaza… and everybody went wild. Elves climbed on top of each other, as Frank Sinatra’s rendition of the old classic began to echo out at full blast.</p><p>“HE’S HERE!” Clara cried. “HE’S HERE!”</p><p>“Where!?” Mike asked, trying to see past the clamoring Elves stacked on top of each other blocking his vision.</p><p>“I SEE HIM!” Billy pointed with a gigantic smile. “OVER THERE!”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, excitedly snapping his fingers and pointing, looking in the direction of the Christmas icon, before producing a top hat out of his pocket, placing it on his head to tip it respectfully, before putting it away.</p><p>“I can’t see him!” Mike shouted over the roar of the crowd. “<em>I can’t see him!”</em></p><p>The reindeer began clamoring as well, hopping up and down. The world seemed to move in slow motion, as one bell, hanging on by a single thread, was knocked loose, and thrown off.</p><p>The bell rolled, over the ice, under the feet of the cheering Elves, coming to a stop right under Mike’s feet.</p><p>Mike bent down, and picked it up, going to ring it.</p><p>No sound came.</p><p>This was cruel. A gift from El, and he couldn’t even <em>hear </em>the same thing as everybody else. This was for him, wasn’t it? So why did they single him out? It was mean-spirited in the worst way! Did he do something to El?</p><p>No, no… if he’d done something, she wouldn’t bother with the pretense of a gift in the first place. So then why? Why couldn’t he hear? Then, he realized.</p><p>They’d wrapped it in fortune-cookie sentences, leaving him to puzzle it out instead of <em>giving </em>him the answer, but Mike knew what he had to do.</p><p>“I believe…” Mike whispered to himself, trying to ring the bell again. “I believe… I believe…”</p><p>An almost angelic ringing was the reward.</p><p>A smile split his face as he rung it again, hearing the otherworldly chime. Mike brought it away from his ear, the bell’s silver surface sparkling as he held it up to see…</p><p>Mike froze, as he saw the face approaching.</p><p>Mike slowly turned around, the larger-than-life man towering above him at about eight feet tall, in his red and white suit, snowy white beard, rosy-red cheeks…</p><p>“…What was that you said?” Santa asked, voice deep, holding an almost ancient sort of kindness and wisdom.</p><p>“I… I believe…” Mike quietly stammered, not a teenager who’d faced down interdimensional monsters, but a little boy meeting a person who, when he’d last seen anything close to him, was only an imitator in a department store. “I believe… that this is yours?” He swallowed, shakily holding out the bell for him to take.</p><p>Santa looked at it, considering it for a moment, before nodding. “Well…” He took it gently, looking at it. “Thank you.”</p><p>“Me, me!” Glasses called from over to the side. “Pick me, Santa!” He tried, even as Clara kept trying to shush him. “I want the first gift! I want the first gift!”</p><p>“Young lad,” Santa turned to the boy. “Patience.” He stated, but not unkindly. “And,” He continued just as kindly. “A smidgen of humility might also serve you well.”</p><p>Glasses looked chided, but not like he’d felt insulted, or belittled. “Yes, sir.”</p><p>“And you, young lady.” Santa turned to Clara. “Lady of decision, full of confidence and spirit…” He nodded approvingly. “Christmas spirit.” He chuckled quietly. “Keep up the good work.”</p><p>Clara smiled, as Santa moved on.</p><p>“And Billy.” Santa paused for a moment. “It is Billy?”</p><p>Billy nodded quickly but didn’t speak.</p><p>“I see you’ve made some new friends.” Santa looked over at Clara and Mike.</p><p>Billy smiled bashfully. “Yes sir, I sure have.”</p><p>“Lucky lad…” Santa smiled. “There’s no greater gift than friendship. If others can depend on you… you can depend on them. Do well to remember that.” Santa suddenly turned away. “And speaking of gifts!” He raised his voice for the Elves to hear. He turned back. “…Let’s have this young fella right here.”</p><p>The crowd erupted into cheers, as Santa pointed at Mike.</p><p>Mike could hardly believe it, jaw dropping at all of it, as Santa took the lead to his sleigh. Sitting down, the ethereal man waved for him to walk towards him, and Mike slowly approached.</p><p>The last time he’d done this, even with the fake Santas in the malls… God, it was so many years ago. He was only a few years old.</p><p>“Now,” Santa began, as Mike stood next to him. “What would you like for Christmas?”</p><p>“Me?” Mike whispered.</p><p>Santa nodded, a kind smile on his face. “You.”</p><p>Mike bit his lip for a moment…</p><p>He leaned in, whispering something.</p><p>When he was done, Santa looked at him, a considerate look upon his face. “Hm… Indeed. Yes, indeed!” The man stood up, holding up the silver bell for all to see. “The first gift of Christmas!” He bellowed in proclamation, the crowd cheering.</p><p>He brought his arm down, presenting the bell to Mike. “This bell… Is a wonderful symbol of the spirit of Christmas, as am I.” Santa laughed quietly, as Mike took it gently from him. “Just remember, the true spirit of Christmas… lies in your heart. So long as you carry it within you… That bell shall never fall silent.”</p><p>The clock chimed, as it hit midnight.</p><p>“Merry Christmas.” Santa offered Mike, as the Doctor approached.</p><p>Mike returned it with a nod, smiling.</p><p>“Better keep that in a safe place.” The Time Lord recommended.</p><p>Mike nodded and placed the bell in the left pocket of his robe, before stepping down from the sleigh.</p><p>The reindeer began getting antsy, bells ringing, as Mike walked over to the rest of the group, the Doctor staying behind for a moment.</p><p>“Thank you, Nick.” The Doctor offered Santa.</p><p>Santa bowed politely. “Anything for an old friend, Doctor.”</p><p>The fob watch in the man’s pocket chimed, and he checked it, turning to Santa with a shrug. “Best be off.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Hey, hey!” Glasses hopped up and down as Mike and the Doctor rejoined the group. “Man alive, are you lucky!”</p><p>Mike smiled, as he turned around to face the sleigh again, Santa producing a long whip, made from shining rainbow light.</p><p>Santa cracked the whip, and the reindeer began to float up, pulling the sleigh. “Ho-ho-ho!” He laughed, waving as the sleigh began to slide forward, towards the edge of the platform. “Pull, Comet! Pull, boy! Prancer, that's a girl! Good boy, Donner!” The sleigh slid off the edge, being pushed by Elves at the back, and it began to float, being pulled along by the reindeer. “Oh, ho-ho-ho!”</p><p>The group from the train stared on in awe, the Elves cheering on as the sleigh flew above the square. The sleigh climbed higher and higher, turning up the side of the nearby clocktower.</p><p>“Now, Dasher!” Santa called. “Now, Prancer and Vixen!” The sled shot over the train, turning back around, buzzing the group below.</p><p>“It’s everything I dreamed it would be.” Clara smiled, as snow began to fall.</p><p>“Is that what all this is?” Billy asked. “A dream?”</p><p>Mike shook his head, smiling. “No.”</p><p>Santa’s sled climbed around the tree, and at the very top, he cracked the whip, hitting the star, illuminating the whole tree in a rainbow.</p><p>“To the top of the roof!” Santa called, the sled passing over the square again. “To the top of the wall! Now, dash away, dash away! Dash away all-!“</p><p>The sled vanished into a puff of snowflakes and jingles, raining down on the square below.</p><p>Everything fell silent, before the Elves all let out one massive whoop, throwing their hats into the air.</p><p>His fob watch chimed, and the Doctor checked it. “ALLLLL ABOARD!” He called, the train’s light turning on, the whistle blowing.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0077"><h2>77. Believe</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As much as he wanted to stay for the afterparty, it was a probably a good idea for Mike to get back before anyone could notice he was gone.</p><p>As he stood in line, Mike noticed the antics of the Elves reattaching the passenger car and laughed slightly.</p><p>Up ahead, the Doctor punched Glasses’s ticket, passing it back to the boy.</p><p>“Lean.” The boy read with a scowl. “Whatever that’s supposed to mean!”</p><p>“Lean,” The Doctor began as the boy shoved the ticket back into his hand, “Is spelled with <em>four</em> letters, I believe I punched <em>five</em>.” He stated, holding it in the kid’s face.</p><p>“Hey, are you saying I don’t know how to-“ Glasses snatched it back. “Oh, I’m sorry, it says ‘Learn.’” He corrected himself. “My mistake.” He apologized, stepping back on the train.</p><p>“Lesson learned.” The Doctor remarked, as Billy approached next. “Ticket?”</p><p>Billy handed it to the Doctor, and he quickly punched it, handing it back to the boy.</p><p>‘Depend On,’ it read. Billy flipped it over, and suddenly, the holes that were punched in it changed to ‘Rely On,’ and with one final flip, ‘Count On.’</p><p>Billy looked around, confused.</p><p>The Doctor chuckled. “That’s one special ticket.”</p><p>Billy nodded shyly. “It is.”</p><p>“Santa was right, you know.” The Doctor said. “If others can depend on you… You can depend on them. So, we depended on you to be our passenger, so do you think you can <em>depend on</em> us to get you home, safe and sound?”</p><p>“Absolutely.” Billy responded, looking momentarily at Mike and Clara. “Me, and my friends.” He said, before stepping onto the train.</p><p>Clara approached next.</p><p>The Doctor took her ticket, punching it.</p><p>“It says lead.” Clara read. “Like a lead balloon.”</p><p>“It’s also pronounced ‘lead.’” The Doctor told her. “As in leader. Leadership. Lead the way.” He smiled, giving her a comical salute. “I’ll follow you anywhere, ma’am.”</p><p>Clara smiled, stepping back into the train.</p><p>“Ah, yes…” The Doctor turned to Mike. “The young man with all the questions… I hope the trip was everything you expected it to be?”</p><p>“Better.” Mike answered. “…some Christmas gift.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed, taking the ticket. “Yep. Yeah, the train ride wasn’t the gift. It was meeting <em>Santa Claus. </em>You know, in case you needed that spelled out. Count yourself lucky, Mike. You got something only a few others on the planet have gotten to do.” He outlined, punching the ticket behind his back, before handing it over to Mike.</p><p>Mike’s eyebrows furrowed. “It says-“</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor’s hand shot out. “It’s nothing I need to know.”</p><p>Mike smiled and stepped onto the train.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Come on, let’s see the bell!” A little girl requested, as Mike stepped into the passenger car.</p><p>“Yeah, let’s see it!” Another child requested.</p><p>“Yeah, come on.” Clara agreed, excitedly pulling Mike over to a seat. “Show us the bell.”</p><p>“Yeah!” Glasses hopped up and down excitedly. “Let’s see the bell.”</p><p>Mike sat down, smiling, as he reached into his pocket. His fingers poked out of the hole he’d torn when grabbing it earlier, and his smile dropped, as he felt around, to no avail.</p><p>“…It’s gone.” Mike stated just loud enough for the others to hear. “I lost it. I lost the bell…”</p><p>“Don’t worry!” Billy said. “We’ll help you find it!” The other children clamored in agreement.</p><p>“Yeah,” Clara shot to her feet, “Let’s find it, before-“</p><p>The car rocked, as the train set into motion.</p><p>Clara moved back over to the window, looking as the scenery outside moved past, elves beginning to slowly dance as the party died down. “It’s too late…”</p><p>Mike got up from his seat, running over to the Doctor. “We have to stop the train!”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor questioned. “Why?”</p><p>“The gift from Santa!” Mike outlined. “I lost it!”</p><p>The Doctor bit his lip, taking the fob watch out of his pocket, looking at it.</p><p>The arm went into the part of the face with the red background, words in a little curved section on the bottom flashing by with little dings.</p><p>‘RUNNING A BIT LATE. SHOULD NOT STOP UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.’</p><p>The Time Lord looked to the boy sadly. He’d bend heaven and earth for El’s friends… but there were other kids he had to worry about. “I’m sorry, Mike… But we really can’t afford to stay any longer.”</p><p>“Gee,” Glasses began, like he was trying to find something to say. “That’s really too bad… Really.”</p><p>Mike’s head fell.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“<em>11344, Edbrooke,”</em> The Doctor quietly spoke into the microphone at the front of the car, the children inside tuckered out. <em>“Next stop, 11344, Edbrooke.”</em> He placed the microphone back, and began walking down the car, towards the steps.</p><p>Billy got to his feet and began to follow.</p><p>“Hey!” Glasses addressed. “Where ya going?”</p><p>Billy shifted on his feet, not liking his own answer. “Home.”</p><p>“Oh…” Glasses said. “Merry Christmas.”</p><p>Billy nodded shyly in response, and began walking, coming to another stop at the seat where Mike and Clara were sitting.</p><p>Billy shifted awkwardly. “Thanks… For stopping the train.” His hand shot out.</p><p>Mike smiled gently, shaking the boy’s hand. “You’re welcome.” He said, releasing him.</p><p>Clara followed Mike’s example by hugging the boy. “Have a wonderful Christmas, Billy.” She wished.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor threw down a metal step for the child, Billy coming down.</p><p>“Watch your step.” He advised. “And Merry Christmas.”</p><p>Billy nodded awkwardly and turned to his house. He noticed something, and his finger shot out, pointing.</p><p>The Doctor smiled and gestured.</p><p>The young boy ran, across the yard, up the steps to his house, as the Doctor stepped back on, and the train began moving again.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Look!” Clara pointed, grabbing Mike’s attention, as Billy came running back out, holding the same box from the North Pole. “Santa visited Billy’s house already!”</p><p>Indeed, Billy’s own repeated shouting confirmed it.</p><p>“Isn’t that amazing?” Clara asked.</p><p>Mike smiled. “It is amazing.”</p><p>----------</p><p>The Polar Express kicked up snow, as it came back to Mike’s house. The train began to slow down, and the Doctor hopped out from the front, as the train came to a stop, putting the passenger car’s exit right beside him.</p><p>------------</p><p>Mike, Clara, and Glasses stood at the top steps.</p><p>“Hey,” Clara quietly told Mike. “I’m sorry about the bell.”</p><p>“Well, you know what they say. It’s the thought that counts.” Glasses stated.</p><p>“Yeah…” Mike agreed despondently.</p><p>“Well… See ya.” Glasses awkwardly waved, before going back into the car.</p><p>The Doctor cleared his throat, checking his watch.</p><p>Mike shook his head at the older man. “Merry Christmas, Clara.” He said, stepping down to exit, as Clara too went back into the car.</p><p>“Watch your step please, Mikey.” The Doctor advised.</p><p>Mike looked to the man. “Thank you.”</p><p>“Don’t thank me,” The Doctor retorted. “Thank El. It was all her idea. Now, I know you have questions, but get inside.” He ordered. “You’re going to need all your energy tomorrow. We’ll talk then.”</p><p>Mike slowly nodded and looked to the falling snow, and the stuff gathering on the ground out in front of the house.</p><p>“How long have I been gone?” Mike asked.</p><p>The Doctor said nothing, merely offering a smile and a wink, before stepping back on board, and Mike waded through the snow, towards the house.</p><p>“…Merry Christmas!” The Doctor called as Mike opened the door.</p><p>Mike turned around, holding the door open. “What?” He yelled as the train began to speed up.</p><p>The Doctor cupped his hands. “MERRY CHRISTMAS!” He shouted, waving as he went up into the train car.</p><p>Mike returned it the wave awkwardly, and the train began to speed away.</p><p>As the train departed, the teenager could see the ghostly hobo on top, playing his instrument, before he too waved, vanishing into a puff of lightning. The train turned the bend into the woods, lights fading into the distance.</p><p>Closing and locking the door, Mike slowly walked back to his room, the living room devoid of anything that implied Santa had visited.</p><p>He sighed, and fell back into his bed, falling asleep.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Guys, wake up!” Holly hollered, practically kicking the door open. “It’s Christmas, it’s Christmas!” She repeated excitedly, sprinting back out. “Mom, dad, wake up!”</p><p>Mike let out a breath, as his eyes cricked open.</p><p>He got to his feet, walking over to glance out the window.</p><p>Yep, the trees in the woods were right where they should’ve been… But there was an odd set of lines running in the snow through them, and down the road. How did the Doctor do it?</p><p>Mike grabbed his robe and frowned.</p><p>The hole in the left pocket was ripped even wider as he grabbed it.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The house’s inhabitants, sans the parents, sat gathered in the living room, attention focused on all the presents. A little model train of the Pere Marquette 1225 moved down tiny little tracks, pushing bits of wrapping paper to the wayside, as Mike and Nancy looked at what they had received as well.</p><p>“This was the most bestest Christmas ever!” Holly proclaimed, clapping happily.</p><p>“Hm,” Nancy, looking under the tree, pulled out a tiny gift box, no bigger than her hand. “There’s one we missed.”</p><p>“Who’s is it?” Mike asked.</p><p>“Yours.” The older teenager answered, passing it over.</p><p>“Thanks.” Mike said as he took it, pulling off the bow. Taking off the lid, he looked inside, and gasped, pulling out the bell.</p><p>Mike smiled, ringing it, hearing the beautiful sound, and judging by the way Holly looked at it, she’d heard it too.</p><p>Mike glanced back at the box, reading the little note inside.</p><p>
  <em>‘Found this on the seat of my sleigh. Better fix that hole in your pocket. -Mr. C.’</em>
</p><p>“Oh, what a beautiful bell…” Mike’s mother remarked, looking at the glittering, polished silver. “Can I see?”</p><p>Mike nodded, carefully passing it over.</p><p>Karen held it up to her ear and rung it, frowning. Though Mike and Holly could hear it, the others frowned.</p><p>“Hm. Broken.” Karen passed it back over.</p><p>“Sorry about that, son.” Ted stated, as he and Karen went back to do whatever else it was.</p><p>Mike looked to Holly, who was very obviously confused, and he winked, telling her nonverbally to keep silent about it.</p><p>The boy looked back to the bell, smiling, before his head suddenly shot up, and he heard it. The same, metallic scraping that had heralded the Doctor’s arrival back during November.</p><p>Mike shot to his feet, running over to the window looking out into the front yard. Peeking through the blinds, he gasped.</p><p>There it was. The big blue box belonging to the Doctor, parked inside the house just across the street.</p><p>“Tell mom I’m going out!” Mike told Nancy, running outside, ignoring her calls for him to come back.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0078"><h2>78. The Weirdos on Maple Street</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mike ran straight across the snowy ground, up to the front door of the house across the way, hurriedly knocking on the front door.</p><p>The door opened, Mike being met with El.</p><p>“Hey, Mike.” El smiled.</p><p>Mike, without further preamble, pressed his lips to hers.</p><p>“Oh.” El blinked once Mike pulled away. “Okay… so… that’s one thing we need to talk about.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Come on.” El guided Mike inside.</p><p>“Issat Mike?” The Doctor called from another room with an audible speech impediment.</p><p>“You’re breaking into peoples’ houses now?” Mike questioned El as she led him through the place.</p><p>“There’s number two figured out.” El figured. “Yeah, it’s Mike.” She confirmed for the Doctor, leading Mike into the living room.</p><p>“Oh, good.” The Time Lord sat on a couch, holding something like a futuristic ice pack to his eye. “Thought that was Hopper coming around to finish the job.”</p><p>“Finish the job?” Mike questioned, looking at the Time Lord.</p><p>“Got Will back home last night in time for Christmas. Told Joyce not to tell the others.” The Doctor rubbed his face. “She beat the tar out of me for stealing her son. Don’t blame her, but it hurt like hell.”</p><p>“Oh.” Mike said. Joyce wasn’t really the type to get physical very often, but then again… the Doctor <em>had</em> whisked away Will for a month, even if he brought him back in a better state than when he’d left. “You guys said you wanted to talk about… something.”</p><p>“Right, yeah.” The Doctor recalled, gesturing for El to sit down next to him. “This is between you lot, I’m just here for emotional support.”</p><p>“Emotional support?” Mike looked between the two of them anxiously. “What’s going on?”</p><p>“Okay…” El took a deep breath. “You can do this… you have to do this…” El psyched herself up. “Mike… I wanna start this off by saying you’re still my friend, and always will be.”</p><p>Mike blinked, getting a horrible sinking feeling. “You’re my friend too, El.”</p><p>“And I know you waited for me for 353 days… and I am so, so unbelievably grateful for that…” El sniffled. “But I can’t ask you to keep waiting for me when… I can’t give you what you want.”</p><p>“What?” Mike gulped. “Did I… did I do something wrong?”</p><p>“No, no, you didn’t.” El insisted. “<em>None </em>of this was your fault. That was why I decided to give you that trip as a Christmas present. That way you wouldn’t blame yourself.”</p><p>“Blame myself for what?”</p><p>“Mike… I know… I know you love me.” El swallowed. “And I loved you too… Still love you… but not in that way.”</p><p>Mike’s eyes started to grow watery.</p><p>El looked down, the Doctor mercifully remaining silent the whole time. “Ten years.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“One day on the TARDIS…” El began, swallowing. “We got trapped in a dream state. And the Dream Lord in charge wanted me to choose between real and fake. But he wanted to make it difficult, so he… did some things. He created a world where the Doctor dropped me back off in Hawkins to live a normal life, and he pulled Will into it… maybe even all of you, I don’t know.”</p><p>“Will?” Mike repeated. “What does Will have to do with this?”</p><p>“Mike… he and I lived ten years of our lives in that dream.” El explained. “The Dream Lord based it off a version of reality where you and I didn’t meet. But the Doctor landed in Hawkins anyway.”</p><p>“B-But…” Mike stammered. “You just said it was a dream. Dreams aren’t like that.”</p><p>“Normal dreams aren’t… but it wasn’t just a dream. It was ten years living in like… a holodeck from Star Trek.”</p><p>“I don’t understand.” Mike shook his head.</p><p>“It wasn’t just a dream, Mike.” El explained. “It was like… a whole other world. Those ten years of memories we had, they <em>happened…</em> they just happened in our heads. He and I… well we…”</p><p>“El…” Mike began. “You what?”</p><p>The girl looked down, bouncing her leg up and down. “We got married. We had been getting ready to have a baby.”</p><p>There was something deeply unsettling about someone so outwardly immature saying those things, but the thing was, in that moment, El may have been thirteen, but her eyes did look a good ten years older than the rest of her.</p><p>“Does… does Will remember?” Mike asked.</p><p>El shook her head. “The only things he could remember were the times when he’d been inside the TARDIS. Even then… it was only subconscious. He has no clue.”</p><p>“And you?”</p><p>“…I don’t remember it all the time.” El answered. “The TARDIS helps me by blocking most of it, but some of it still comes through.” She tapped her temples, before a sad kind of smile slipped through. “I’m only even talking this well because I can remember it. After it goes away…” She sighed, shaking her head.</p><p>“Why?” Mike questioned. “Why tell me this?”</p><p>“The thing about the Dream Lord’s world… he couldn’t make the real people act like somebody they weren’t. Will, deep down, still can be the same man I knew… I want to give it a try again. And… I don’t want you to spend your life pining for someone who can’t give you the same thing back.”</p><p>“El…”</p><p>“Please, Mike… I’m not telling you this to hurt you. I’m telling you it because I think it’d hurt more if I didn’t.” El looked him in the eye.</p><p>“But all that stuff that happened before the Doctor came back… Did it mean anything?” Mike asked.</p><p>“It did mean something…” El smiled. “And I’ll always be so, so grateful you were there for me. But from my perspective…. I’d spent longer time with Will. I don’t think it’s crazy to think that if the dream world hadn’t happened, or if I couldn’t bring dad back, I would’ve wound up returning your feelings.”</p><p>“But you don’t.” Mike swallowed, looking down as the tears fell. “It’s not fair…”</p><p>“…it wouldn’t be fair to you if I pretended.” El whispered. “I’m sorry, Mike.”</p><p>“…don’t be.” Mike wiped his eyes. “It isn’t your fault you love him… the <em>idea </em>of him. But…” Mike shook his head. “Enough about him. What about us?”</p><p>“You’re still important to me.” El told him. “I still wanna be friends.”</p><p>“…I’d like that.” Mike smiled in response.</p><p>El beamed, and the years disappeared from her eyes.</p><p>“Aww, look at that.” The Doctor looked between them. “Solving your problems with words and talking about it like adults…” He made a theatrical sniffle. “I’m so proud!”</p><p>“Oh, shut up, dad…” El shook her head.</p><p>“So… what happens now?” Mike asked. “Are you… leaving?”</p><p>“No.” El answered, getting to her feet. She walked over, grabbing a yard sign off the table, showing it off to Mike.</p><p>A ‘For Sale’ sign.</p><p>“We’re staying.” El replied.</p><p>“I figured…” The Doctor shrugged. “There’s no way in hell Will’s mother is going to let me pull him out of school, and people are going to start getting suspicious if the two new arrivals only live in a blue box.”</p><p>“You… <em>bought </em>a house?” Mike questioned. “You just dropped that sort of money on a whim?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged again. “Had to call in some favors, but… Who knows, an actual house might be useful one of these days. Not crazy about America, but El wanted to be close to you lot.”</p><p>“So… you guys are coming back?” Mike hopefully asked.</p><p>“We’ll be out on trips most days, but yeah.” El smiled. “We’re coming back.”</p><p>Mike smiled slightly, despite the fact that he just had his heart broken. El was back, and so was Will, and here to stay, it seemed.</p><p>“Now, come on!” El excitedly hopped up. “I wanna show you around!”</p><p>Mike stood up and sat the bell down on the nearby table.</p><p>As he did, he thought he could see a ghostly, sparkling face with a red hat and long white beard reflected faintly in it, winking.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0079"><h2>79. Ten, Eleven... Eleven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El sighed as she sat upside-down in the seat by the TARDIS console. The gate in Hawkins, though it had since been sealed again, the Mind Flayer trapped on the other side, it still radiated energy, energy that was perfect for the TARDIS to fuel with. Which meant that the whole ‘buy a house’ thing was just to have somewhere they could refuel the TARDIS without being interfered with. If El wanted to hang out with one of her friends, she could get the Doctor to drop her off, or if one of them wanted to hang with El, they could give the TARDIS a call, but most days, the time travelers were off-world, having adventures of their own, only coming back to Earth during the later hours of the day to keep some semblance of synchronization.</p><p>Today, however, was a slow day.</p><p>“Dad…” El whined. “I’m booooored.”</p><p>The Doctor looked up from his comic book, one that Sarah Jane had published under a pseudonym, chronicling the battle of the mysterious Professor to avert the creation of his most hated foes, the Thaleks. “Bored!?” He incredulously repeated. “I take you to the best cruise ship in the galaxy, let you drive a train to the north pole, and you’re bored!?”</p><p>El shrugged. “Those things happened ages ago. I’m bored <em>now</em>.”</p><p>“Fine, then!” The Doctor jumped to his feet, flicking the sonic screwdriver open, pointing it at the console. Pressing the button, sparks flew out of the console on one side, before the time rotor engaged.</p><p>“Ah!” El yelped, barely keeping her balance as she put herself right-side up. “Dad!”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor replied with a shrug. “You said you wanted an adventure.”</p><p>“I said I was <em>bored</em>!” El replied, as the console sparked again. “I was thinking you could take me to the new mall! You know, in the future, when it was finished.”</p><p>The Doctor scoffed. “I can take you to The Mall. Literally. The mall so big it doesn’t need a name. But you want to head to… Starcourt?” He crinkled his nose. “Besides, this way, we don’t know what we’re getting into!”</p><p>“What?” El questioned.</p><p>“I put the randomizer on full!”  The Doctor answered. “There’s no earthly way of knowing where we’re going!”</p><p>A pipeline on the console ruptured, spitting out smoke into the Doctor’s face, blasting his hair back.</p><p>“Ah.” The Time Lord blinked, as his hair stood up like he was Einstein.  “Hblublublubluh.” He shook his head. “Don’t worry, that’s meant to happen.”</p><p>El fought back giggles. “Nice hair.”</p><p>“Oh, you think so?” The Doctor held his hand up to it.</p><p>A mauve light began to flash on the console.</p><p>“Ah, maybe I should take care of this, first.” The Doctor turned a dial, and instantly, a part on the other side of the console sparked. “Allllrighty then, no mean to alarm you, El, but you might want to hold on!”</p><p>“Oh, great, crashing!” The girl dove onto the seat, grabbing the rails on both sides.</p><p>“All hands, assume the positions!” The Doctor shouted, as the TARDIS suddenly stopped, shaking like it had hit something.</p><p>El sat up on the glass floor, shaking her head. She sighed, looking to the Time Lord. “Where are we?”</p><p>“Let’s see… Oh!” The Doctor tapped the keyboard. “The 2012 Olympic Games! But where?”</p><p>The doors were suddenly pushed open, a man running into the console room.</p><p>El looked to the door in surprise, as the Doctor looked to the door as well, more mortified than she had ever seen him before.</p><p>The man stopped in confusion, spiky hair defying gravity as he looked around.</p><p>“My TARDIS…” The man in the brown suit with blue pinstripes remarked, looking around the console room. “What’ve you done to my TARDIS!? It’s hideous!”</p><p>“Oi!” The Doctor shouted back, turning to the console, stroking it. “Don’t you listen to him…”</p><p>Pinstripe-man’s eyes locked on the Doctor, projecting an aura of threat as he walked up to the console. “Where is Rose? What’ve you done with her?”</p><p>“Dad?” El whispered to the Doctor. “Who is he?”</p><p>The Doctor huffed, leaning on the console. “Blimey, Rose, Rose, Rose, you really have a one-track mind, don’t you?”</p><p>Pinstripes furiously pointed. “If you’ve even <em>thought </em>about hurting her, for even a <em>second</em>-!”</p><p>“Of course I didn’t hurt her!” The Doctor scowled.</p><p>“Dad?” El poked the Doctor.</p><p>“And how do I know that?” Pinstripes demanded. “You’ve obviously figured out a way to break into my TARDIS. I’m giving you one chance. One. Cut your losses now, and run, before I make you regret it.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m soo scared.” The Doctor mockingly held up his hands. “The Oncoming Storm. Maybe I’d take you more seriously if you weren’t wearing SANDSHOES!”</p><p>“DOCTOR!” El shouted.</p><p><em>“What!?” </em>Both men whipped towards her.</p><p>Pinstripes froze, looking slowly towards the Doctor. “No…”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled awkwardly. “Yep.”</p><p>“Oh, no…”</p><p>“Oh, yes.”</p><p>“You’re not…”</p><p>The Doctor held up his sonic screwdriver.</p><p>“Dad,” El leaned towards him, “What’s going on? Who is he?”</p><p>“El,” The Doctor threw his hand out. “Meet… the Doctor.”</p><p>El looked to Pinstripe-man. “No… no way.”</p><p>“I told you, this was my Eleventh face.” The Doctor began. “Meet Ten.”</p><p>“Aw, no…” Ten groaned. “I become <em>you</em> next go-around!?”</p><p>Eleven looked affronted. “What’s that supposed to mean!?”</p><p>Ten looked Eleven up and down, nose wrinkling in disgust. “Not a big fan of the bow tie. Or the chin. Or the braces. Or the tweed. Really, the only saving grace is the hair colour, and I have to dock points because of the Einstein look.”</p><p>Eleven scowled, patting his hair down.</p><p>El slowly walked over to Ten, looking around him. She examined the man up and down, as he looked back at her, frowning. Her eyes widened, as she recognized it. “The suit!” She breathed, whipping around to her Doctor. “You were wearing that when we met!”</p><p>“Spoilers!” Eleven hissed to her.</p><p>“Yeah, that’s comforting, knowing what you’re going to be wearing when you die.” Ten muttered, looking to Eleven. “’Dad?’” He repeated.</p><p>“Yeah.” Eleven smiled proudly, throwing an arm around El’s shoulders. “My little El…”</p><p>El huffed. “Not little.”</p><p>Ten swallowed looking around. “Is Rose…”</p><p>“You know I can’t say.” Eleven replied.</p><p>“…yeah.” Ten swallowed, looking around. “So… you’ve redecorated.”</p><p>Eleven smiled.</p><p>“I don’t like it.”</p><p>“OI!”</p><p>“I mean, it’s not <em>bad</em>…” Ten tapped his foot on the glass. “Digging the copper paneling, but glass floors? And three separate staircases? What are you, a fitness instructor?”</p><p>Eleven huffed, crossing his arms. “You can talk, sandshoes.”</p><p>“They’re not sandshoes!” Ten insisted.</p><p>El looked between the two. “Wait, if you’re both the Doctor… you shouldn’t be here, should you?”</p><p>Ten shrugged. “It happens sometimes. A lot more than you would think. Thing about Time Lords, though, is we’ve got all sorts of built in defenses against it.”</p><p>Eleven nodded. “Time technically regards us as two separate individuals, with the exception of our memory. Meeting a previous regeneration isn’t going to cause as many nasty timey wimey shenanigans as meeting a younger version of the same regeneration would.”</p><p>“Timey wimey…” Ten repeated, running the words through his mouth. “I like that. ‘Timey wimey.’”</p><p>Eleven smiled slightly. “Figured you might.” He turned to El. “The moment either one of us leaves this time zone the younger one, that’s him, will forget this encounter ever happened. A nice, clean way of preventing paradoxes.”</p><p>“Right…” El slowly approached the Tenth Doctor. “You’re him? Really?”</p><p>The man flashed her a toothy smile, waggling his fingers. “Hello!”</p><p>El frowned skeptically, placing a hand on the man’s sternum.</p><p>
  <em>Thump thump thump thump. Thump thump thump thump.</em>
</p><p>El inhaled, looking up. “Dad…” She breathed.</p><p>“Well…” Ten replied. “Not your dad yet, hopefully not for a while, but… yeah. I s’pose so“</p><p>El smiled, hugging him.</p><p>“Ah, a hug. Hugs are good. I like hugs.” Ten rambled.</p><p>El pulled back, looking between them. “We should do something.”</p><p>Ten rubbed the back of his head, as Eleven vehemently gestured ‘no.’</p><p>“It won’t destroy the universe, but that doesn’t mean we should-“</p><p>“Quiet.” El ordered. “We go with him now, or I make you take me to Starcourt.”</p><p>Eleven glanced between them, to Ten’s frozen face, and sighed. “Fine, okay, we’ll go with him.”</p><p>“You know, I really should be getting back to Rose-“ Ten pointed his thumb.</p><p>“Rose can wait.” El decided, taking the hands of both of them. “I want…” She frowned in thought. “Cupcakes. Yes, cupcakes. Never had cupcakes.”</p><p>Ten looked to her with wide eyes. “You’ve <em>never </em>had cupcakes?”</p><p>El shook her head.</p><p>“…Rose can wait.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>It took a little bit of wandering, but the three travelers eventually found a bakery not far from the TARDIS, selling special Olympic-themed items for <em>EXORBITANT </em>prices.</p><p>El looked curiously in the display cases, mouth agape slightly, looking at all the stuff inside.</p><p>“Oh, look!” Ten beamed, looking in the case. “They have the cakes with the little ball bearings on top!”</p><p>“Never mind the cupcakes!” Eleven replied, pressing his face to the glass, before El pulled him back. “They’ve got scratch-made Jaffa Cakes! Ohohohoho… you are <em>so </em>going to get it when we get home…” He whispered to the food items.</p><p>El rolled her eyes. Children, the lot of them.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Mmm, fantastic.” Ten took down a bite of his cupcake. “You know, it’s so hard to find cakes with edible ball-bearings ‘round here. Humans are the only species that bother.”</p><p>El frowned, eating one of her own. Red velvet… wasn’t velvet that really nice-feeling cloth for fancy clothes? “Really?”</p><p>“Unfortunately.” Ten sighed. “Means I have to stop back on Earth whenever my stash on the TARDIS gets low.”</p><p>“Augh, I know…” Eleven groaned, taking a swig of brown liquid out of an unmarked bottle. “So hard to find good ball bearings.”</p><p>Ten glanced at him. “You really drink your tea like that?”</p><p>“’S not tea.” Eleven replied.</p><p>Ten frowned. “What is it then? Whiskey? Tequila? Bourbon? Ginger beer?”</p><p>“Malt vinegar.”</p><p>“…huh?”</p><p>“Malt. Vinegar.” Eleven locked his eyes with Ten, staring the man dead in the eye as he threw back the liquid.</p><p>Ten made sick wrenching noises as El frowned.</p><p>“What’s vinegar?”</p><p>“You eat it.”</p><p>“ON CHIPS!” Ten replied.</p><p>Eleven shrugged, smiling. “Why do you think we swung by the chippy?” He asked, throwing a few chunks of the fried potatoes into his mouth.</p><p>Ten shook his head, ashamed for his future, before he looked to El. “You sure don’t have a clue about what a lot of things are.” He remarked.</p><p>“I…” She looked around at the crowd in the place, lowering her voice. “Didn’t get out much.”</p><p>Ten scowled. “Didn’t get out much? Has he been keeping you locked in the TARDIS!?”</p><p>“No.” El shook her head.</p><p>Eleven looked to him seriously. “She was in a… bad place for a long time. I rescued her.”</p><p>El smiled slightly. “Yeah…”</p><p>“So, you don’t know much about the outside then.” Ten guessed.</p><p>El shook her head. “No. But I’m learning. I can read now and speak better too. The TARDIS still has to help sometimes, but I can manage on my own most times.”</p><p>Ten beamed proudly. “That’s brilliant.” He looked between the two of them. “Right, well,” He stood up, “I’ve got to be off. You know how it is. People to meet, planets to visit. Hasn’t been half bad.” He offered, shaking his future self’s hand.</p><p>“It’s been good seeing you, Doctor.” Eleven replied.</p><p>Ten released his hand, turning to El with a smile. “And I look forward to meeting you someday.” He offered, pulling her into a hug. He glanced to Eleven, then back to the girl. “Talk to you in a few seconds.” He chuckled at his own joke, before leaving the shop.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, flopping back in the chair, watching as his past walked into the distance.</p><p>“…how did it happen?” El asked, looking to the Time Lord.</p><p>“What?” The Doctor looked to her. “Sorry?”</p><p>“He was the past you, before you changed your face.” El outlined. “Why did you do it?”</p><p>“…To save a life.” The Doctor answered, looking away. “That Doctor… he lost everything. Everyone he ever loved. At the end, when it came down to it… he- <em>I</em> chose to spare an old man already nearing the end of his life, rather than leave him to die.”</p><p>“I’m sorry.” El apologized.</p><p>“Don’t be.” The Doctor replied, ruffling her hair. “He’s been through a lot of pain, and the worst times are still to come… but there’ll be good days, too.” He checked his watch. “The games just started, wanna go watch?”</p><p>“Sure.” El agreed, standing up, letting the Doctor lead her. “…it was nice meeting you.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “It was nice meeting you too.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0080"><h2>80. The Dream World: Return to Earth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p></p><div>
  <p></p>
  <div class="chapter">
    <p></p>
    <div class="userstuff module">
      <p>“Are you…” The Doctor swallowed, green eyes looking at El fearfully. “Sure about this?”</p>
      <p>“…almost died.” El replied, shuddering. “Don’t… don’t want to again.”</p>
      <p>The Doctor sighed. “Fair enough… that is absolutely fair enough.” The Weeping Angels were scary at <em>best</em>. Add them, and some near-death scenarios… he couldn’t blame El for being reluctant to keep traveling.</p>
      <p>“Don’t want to leave, but…” El shivered. “It’s too scary.”</p>
      <p>“I know… I know.” The Doctor pulled her into a comforting hug. “I should’ve never put you into that position to start with.”</p>
      <p>“What… what happens now?” El asked.</p>
      <p>“Well…”</p>
      <p>–-------------</p>
      <p>The door opened, and the Doctor stepped out first, looking to the TARDIS. It’d only served to drive the point home. Instead of looking like a police box, the ship had disguised itself as a classic American cape cod style house. The TARDIS had landed just off a road not far from the former lab, convenient. UNIT was converting the place into a base of sorts, keeping an eye on things in the town in case the gate reopened.</p>
      <p>But that just confirmed it in the Doctor’s head… he was in it for the long haul now. The TARDIS willingly disguising herself as anything other than a Police Box could only mean that the exterior shell was no longer needed to inspire the image of the helpful blue box, but to serve its intended function. As a disguise.</p>
      <p>To anyone unfamiliar with the town, it was just another house. To anyone native to the town, it would’ve always been there as far as they were concerned.</p>
      <p>The Doctor looked up at the exterior of his ship, as El followed the Doctor out, tuning to look at the TARDIS with a frown.</p>
      <p>“It’s changed.” El remarked.</p>
      <p>“Yeah.” The Doctor inhaled, looking to her. “Putting down roots… we need an actual home to blend in. Not a blue box.”</p>
      <p>“Home…” El slowly nodded. “Yes.”</p>
      <p>The Doctor turned back to the TARDIS. His days as an adventurer, over. He expected it to be because he finally pushed the TARDIS to her breaking point, or because he died trying to do something extremely clever but only making himself look like a pillock in the end.</p>
      <p>But retiring to raise a little girl in safety… Well, there were worse fates, he supposed.</p>
      <p>-----------</p>
      <p>The first few days/weeks in Hawkins were, admittedly, very slow going. One might ask why the Doctor would choose small-town America to settle down instead of someplace more interesting. Truth is, he had no idea, he just felt it was… right.</p>
      <p>The first thing he did when landing was getting in contact with UNIT.</p>
      <p><em>“Hello,” </em>A pleasant woman answered the phone. If there was one thing the Doctor really liked about the 80s, is that no robots to staff the phones. <em>“You’ve reached the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce, UK division. How may I assist you?”</em></p>
      <p>“Yes, hello, I need to speak to the Brigadier.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“I’m sorry, but Sir Alistair is a very busy man. But I would be happy to make sure his schedule is cleared to arrange a call-back.”</em>
      </p>
      <p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. That was UNIT speak for ‘The Brigadier’s enjoying a glass of brandy because one of the privates tried to play around with alien tech of unknown origin and got pregnant. Bugger off while we figure out exactly how a man is supposed to give birth.’</p>
      <p>“Look, you’ve got a list of priority callers by your side.” The Doctor recognized. “One of those is Doctor John Smith, personnel ID #23111963. Put me through, please?”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“…putting you through now, Doctor Smith.”</em>
      </p>
      <p><em>“Hello?” </em>The slightly deep voice on the other end quickly  asked. <em>“Doctor?”</em></p>
      <p>The Time Lord smiled. “Hello, Brigadier.</p>
      <p><em>“Good Lord,” </em>The Brigadier breathed. <em>“You’ve done it again, haven’t you?”</em></p>
      <p>“Well, I don’t want to <em>brag</em>, but…” The Doctor checked himself out in the reflection of the console scanner. “Let’s just say I won the genetic lottery this time and leave it at that. But let’s just leave it there because,” He checked his watch, “I’m kind of pressed for time here.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“You can’t spare a few minutes to talk to an old friend?”</em>
      </p>
      <p>“I can’t right now,” The Doctor answered, “Because something’s about to happen.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“Oh? Do tell.”</em>
      </p>
      <p>“23<sup>rd</sup> of November 1983. Momentous day in my life, trust me, you’ll figure it out.” The Doctor answered. “You’re about to get swept up into the events yourself, but before you do, I need you to do a favor for me.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“…what is it?”</em>
      </p>
      <p>The Doctor glanced up the steps, to the corridor leading to El’s room. “You’ve heard about the Hawkins Laboratory by now, I expect.”</p>
      <p><em>“Yes.” </em>The Brigadier confirmed, sounding not too pleased by that fact. <em>“I suspected you had something to do with UNIT getting called out there.”</em></p>
      <p>“Yeah, yeah, chastise me for treating UNIT like my attack dogs later.” The Doctor rolled his eyes. “But long story short, I rescued a girl from that lab. I’m raising her now. But, I can’t be certain that these yahoos over here won’t try anything.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“What did you have in mind?”</em>
      </p>
      <p>“I need a birth certificate, social security, everything that Americans get.” The Doctor answered, “I figured I’d call you because-“</p>
      <p>
        <em>“Because I’m an old friend whose buttons you know exactly how to push?”</em>
      </p>
      <p>“Technically, yes.” The Doctor replied. “Although, truthfully speaking, the idea was to butter you up with promises to make you the godfather.”</p>
      <p><em>“…You drive a hard bargain, Doctor.” </em>The Brigadier replied, smile evident in his voice. <em>“I’ll have to see what I can do. UNIT may be much more widespread than we were before, but there’s a limit to even what we can do.”</em></p>
      <p>“All I’m asking is that you try, Alistair.” The Doctor replied. “And I’m asking you because I trust you.”</p>
      <p>
        <em>“I know. Take good care of her, Doctor. I’ll talk to you soon.”</em>
      </p>
      <p>The line went dead, and the Doctor sighed, placing the phone on the hook.</p>
      <p>-----------</p>
      <p>The Brigadier, as it turns out, had a lot more connections than the Doctor had thought. Not <em>only </em>was he able to get all the documents needed to make El a ‘real’ person, but he also pulled an old friend out of mothballs just for the Doctor.</p>
      <p>The Time Lord stood, a big grin on his face as he stared at the object just across the way. The TARDIS had made a proper driveway too. He’d have to thank her for that.</p>
      <p>El tilted her head, at the gaudy yellow the vehicle was painted. “What is it?”</p>
      <p>“The coolest ride on the planet!” The Doctor answered excitedly hopped into the driver’s seat of the Edwardian roadster. “Bessie!”</p>
      <p>“…Bessie.” El repeated blinking.</p>
      <p>“Come on, come on, come on!” The Doctor excitedly waved her over. “You’ve got hair now, so you know the best thing to do with it?”</p>
      <p>El tilted her head, as she sat down next to the Doctor.</p>
      <p>“Letting it blow in the wind!” He finished, turning the engine over, before throwing the car into gear, flooring it.</p>
      <p>El gasped in surprise as the car went from zero to sixty in a micro-instant, the trees whipping past as the wind blew her hair back.</p>
      <p>“Bessie’s tricked out with all sorts of cool tech!” The Doctor beamed. “Including this!” He flipped up a cover under the dash, labeled ‘Super Drive.’ Flicking the switch, Bessie shot forward even faster, the speedometer hitting one hundred kph effortlessly. “Minimum inertia hyperdrive! And, watch this!”</p>
      <p>The Doctor slammed the brakes, the car instantly coming to a screeching stop. Despite that, and the fact that the two weren’t wearing seatbelts, they remained perfectly stationary, and unharmed.</p>
      <p>The Doctor turned to El with a satisfied smile, before he pressed the gas again.</p>
      <p>El smiled, looking around at the scenery passing by. It hadn’t really occurred to her thus far, but she hadn’t ever ridden in a car before.</p>
      <p>She turned to the Doctor. “Where are we going?”</p>
      <p>The Time Lord shrugged. “Around.” He glanced at her. “Sunday drive, I think is what humans call it. Then again, there are some errands we really should run. Blegh.” He shuddered in disgust. “Errands. Is this what my life has become? The Doctor, the Last of the Time Lords, doing… domestic things.” He shook his head. “Do it for her. Do it for her.” He repeated the mantra, as El laughed slightly.</p>
      <p>--------------</p>
      <p>The Doctor slowly led El into Bradley’s Big Buy, pushing a shopping trolley carefully. He didn’t want to attract too much attention, not when he’d broken into the place not a few weeks ago. The Time Lord haphazardly threw items into the cart, from stuff he knew they’d need, to just anything that happened to look appetizing. El also put in some assistance,</p>
      <p>Just when he thought it would be over and done with, the calm was shattered by something behind him.</p>
      <p>“It’s you!” Someone recognized him, and the Doctor whipped around.</p>
      <p>“Ah!” The Time Lord recognized. “Joyce! Lovely to see you again!” He walked over, kissing the air on both sides of her head. “…that’s what we do now, right?”</p>
      <p>The woman pulled the Doctor into a grateful hug. “Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” She repeated, practically squeezing the life out of him. “I didn’t get to say thanks!”</p>
      <p>“For what?” The Doctor blinked.</p>
      <p>“For saving Will, of course!”</p>
      <p>“Oh, that?” The Doctor waved his hand. “Just a day’s work. No need to thank me.”</p>
      <p>“Aw, quit being so modest!” Joyce ordered. “Thank you… really.”</p>
      <p>The Doctor smiled bowing slightly. “You’re quite welcome. How is the lad?”</p>
      <p>Joyce returned it with a solemn smile. “He’s… been through a lot. But he’s getting there.”</p>
      <p>“Any problems with hospital bills, care, anything like that?” The Time Lord pressed.</p>
      <p>“No, no.” Joyce denied. “That… UNIT, I was a bit squeamish, letting them take care of things but… they got it all sorted. Even gave me a big check. Not to keep silent or anything, but because one of the higher-ups thought I needed it.” The woman tearfully wiped her eyes. “You don’t… you don’t know how much of a difference that makes.”</p>
      <p>“Oh, but I do know.” The Doctor replied. “That’s why I did it.”</p>
      <p>The woman smiled gratefully; eyes still thick with tears. “Thank you.” She looked between the two of them. “You said you two were just passing through… how long did you plan on staying?”</p>
      <p>“Well, uhm…” The Doctor tugged his bow tie. “For the foreseeable future, I suppose.”</p>
      <p>“Huh?”</p>
      <p>“We got a house here.” The Doctor outlined, clasping his hands.</p>
      <p>Joyce tilted her head. “Really?”</p>
      <p>“Yep, right down…” The Time Lord blinked. He really didn’t know the layout of the town to begin with, certainly not enough to know the name of the street that the TARDIS had materialized on. “Uhm, uh…”</p>
      <p>“Maple.” El whispered to the Time Lord.</p>
      <p>“Maple.” The Doctor finally answered with a self-satisfied nod.</p>
      <p>“Oh,” Joyce looked intrigued. “Well, how about you come by for dinner?” She suggested. “It can be a little welcoming celebration.”</p>
      <p>The Doctor blinked. “Oh, I wouldn’t want to impress upon-“</p>
      <p>“Please,” Joyce insisted. “You brought my son back. You even arranged for everything to be paid for. Please, let me repay it.”</p>
      <p>The Doctor and El looked at each other. “Well… El could stand to make some new friends, I suppose.”</p>
      <p>“Great!” Joyce smiled. “When did you want to come by?”</p>
      <p>“Oh, uh…” The Doctor tried to think of a convenient time for humans. “Six?”</p>
      <p>“Sounds good.” Joyce replied. “See you then.” She offered, before walking off.</p>
      <p>The Doctor blinked, looking to El. “Did that woman just strong-arm me into dinner at her house?”</p>
      <p>El nodded.</p>
      <p>“…huh.”</p>
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<a name="section0081"><h2>81. Space, 1969</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Ealing, 2011</em>
</p><p>Things in 13 Bannerman Road were, so far, calm. Big Bang Two had put the universe back into place fairly intact, most people going back to their lives like nothing had happened. Most weren’t even aware there had been a problem.</p><p>A small number, however, did remember. All of whom were the Doctor’s associates. Including Sarah Jane Smith.</p><p>It had been some time since she’d last heard from the Doctor. Almost a year, since she got plopped down back in the proper time zone. That’s not to say she was worried. No, the Doctor was more than capable of surviving on his own. Truth be told, Sarah Jane didn’t think the Doctor needed her there, he took care of El just fine.</p><p>But it had been a long, long time… And the Doctor hadn’t tried to get in touch yet. So, that left her to keep tabs on him herself.</p><p>Which led to finding some… interesting accounts in the annals of history.</p><p>----------</p><p>
  <em>German POW camp, 1941</em>
</p><p>“Doctor!” Will wiped mud off his face, as he looked up to the passage to the surface. “See anything?”</p><p>The Time Lord popped his head back in, hanging upside-down. “Is the commandant’s office painted a sort of green colour with a big flag on the wall?”</p><p>An alarm began to sound, dogs barking in the distance.</p><p>“I think the answer’s probably yes.”</p><p>El sighed, turning to the prisoners following them. “Get ready to run.”</p><p>----------</p><p>“The three spies, despite a full mobilization of the German army to bring them in, escaped, never to be seen again.” Sarah Jane read; eyebrows knit together. “Three? Who else did you bring with you?”</p><p>The woman shook her head and turned the page.</p><p>----------</p><p>
  <em>Hawkins Lab, 1971</em>
</p><p>“BACK!” The Doctor shouted, swinging around a broom at the soldiers currently trying to get at the creature wandering the corridors of the facility. He pulled the creature and his two companions into a door, sonicing it shut. “Oughta buy us some time.”</p><p>“What is that thing?” Will questioned, looking at the tentacles coming from its face where its mouth would be, and the tiny brain attached to an umbilical cord from the face.</p><p>“It’s an Ood!” The Doctor answered excitedly. “I love Ood!”</p><p>“Ood…” El repeated, poking the alien. “He’s not too…” She tapped her own head.</p><p>“Just an effect of being born so far away from the greater Ood overmind.” The Doctor answered, leading them through the corridors. The corridor had been sealed, leaving the soldiers in the other parts of the facility trapped outside. “We’ll take him to the Ood Sphere, they can get him sorted out.”</p><p>“I don’t get it.” Will looked at the alien warily as the Doctor led them past some trial rooms. “That,” Will pointed, “Was what was making that… distress signal?”</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“And it… used to be human?”</p><p>“Yeah, every once in a while you hear of a humanoid or two mutating into Ood.” The Doctor explained. “All it takes is the right mixture of chemicals.”</p><p>El stopped, gasping, as she looked into one of the rooms. “Dad…” She swallowed, pointing.</p><p>The Doctor turned to face what she was looking at and frowned. “Brenner… Come on, there’s nothing we can do now. He has to survive; loathe I am to say it.”</p><p>El nodded slowly but frowned. She tilted her head… but stopped. Instead, she practically ripped the door off its hinges, running inside.</p><p>The inhabitants barely registered that they had intruders, not even having the time to initiate their response, before El ran up to Brenner, and with all her might, balled her fist, and walloped the man straight in the jaw.</p><p>With the force from the hit, Brenner went tumbling to the floor.</p><p>“Okay!” El shook the pain out of her hand, running back to join the Doctor. “Now we can go!”</p><p>“El, I’m so disappointed in you!” The Doctor said as they ran down the corridors to the TARDIS. “You can’t just ball your fist and swing; you have to have the technique! You’ll dislocate your fingers doing that!”</p><p>Will looked back, wincing. “I think <em>he </em>might’ve been the one to dislocate something back there.”</p><p>------------</p><p>Sarah Jane looked up from the picture of Brenner’s jaw held by a brace, towards the television.</p><p>A Laurel and Hardy film was playing, the Doctor, Will, and El all dancing along in the film. The doorbell rung, and the woman got up, going to answer.</p><p>The Postman, with a serviceful smile, handed her the mail.</p><p>“Thank you.” Sarah Jane shut the door, flipping through it. She stopped upon coming to a single envelope. Unmarked, save for a single number on the front. There was no indication of who it had come from, but it wasn’t hard to guess.</p><p>TARDIS blue was a very particular color.</p><p>Sarah Jane practically ripped the envelope open, pulling out a small card inside. There wasn’t anything written on it to give any hint to the sender’s identity either, but there was a string of coordinates, and a date.</p><p>It appears she had been invited to… something.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Zaggit Zagoo Bar was the favorite haunt of a great many different alien beings. Humanoids with skin tones every color of the rainbow and body types ranging from short and stocky to tall and thin threw back glasses of incandescent alcohols, as a micro-colony of Wirrn (Giant, fly like lifeforms from the Andromeda galaxy. Lovely people, though the swarm leaders did have the occasional problem with humans.) coordinated with themselves to produce the music filling the bar.</p><p>In one of the booths tucked away near the back, there were two beings.</p><p>“A-And then,” The American-sounding man, actually a native of the Boeshane Peninsula, laughed, holding up a finger. “She’s all outta breath and says ‘What did I ever do to you?’ So, he just goes ‘You tried to kill me and destroy this planet.’ And all she can muster is a measly ‘…apart from that!’”</p><p>The Demogorgon sitting across from him wearing a luxurious jumpsuit colored white with red velvet lapels let out uproarious, growling laughter, clapping its hands.</p><p>“Of course, the moral of that story is,” Jack Harkness continued, holding up a glass of Atlantean bourbon, “If you’re chasing a Slitheen with teleport earrings, make sure to bring a guy with a sonic screwdriver.”</p><p>The Demogorgon shook its head, as it consumed its own drink, Jack throwing back his. The alien’s mandibles clicked as it communicated in a language of low growls, chittering, and whistles.</p><p>“So, whaddya think?” Jack pushed. “A story and a drink. Ready to hear what I have to ask?”</p><p>The alien nodded.</p><p>“I need to get outta here.” Jack said. “As far away from this quadrant as I possibly can.”</p><p>The Demogorgon growled.</p><p>“No, I’m not running cause I’m criminal,” Jack answered, “You won’t have to worry about the Shadow Proclamation shutting you down because of me.”</p><p>The Demogorgon’s head tilted in the universal gesture of interest as it chittered.</p><p>“I’m running cause… bad times.” Jack evasively answered. “I can’t stay here cause it hurts too much to remember. Know what I mean?”</p><p>The alien slowly nodded, chittering like it knew the pain.</p><p>“Honestly, you’re the first starship captain I’ve spoken to in a long time that’ll even consider my offer.” Jack told it.</p><p>“Sir,” A humanoid (He didn’t feel confident saying human. Most species in the universe actually followed a human template. Well, Time Lord template, but that’s just semantics) came up to the table. “This is for you.” He threw down a blue envelope on the table.</p><p>Jack looked up at the man. “Who’s it from?”</p><p>“Can’t say.” The deliverer replied. “I was just told to get this to you, ASAP.”</p><p>Jack nodded, looking down at the familiarly colored envelope. It had been a while since he’d talked to the Doctor. Years, even. But…</p><p>If the Time Lord was calling now, there was no way in hell he was gonna ignore it.</p><p>The Demogorgon clicked, as Jack opened the envelope.</p><p>“I know its dangerous work, but I don’t care.” Jack replied. “I can pull my own weight, you can be sure of tha-“ He sharply inhaled, looking at the date, time, and coordinates on the card inside.</p><p>22 April, 2011… that left a month. A month to get back to Earth.</p><p>He checked his vortex manipulator. Its functions were still shot, just a fancy communicator and clock at this point, no time travel or teleporting.</p><p>Jack searched his pockets, pulling out thin, blank white card. “This is a psychic credit card. Works anywhere, any time.” He placed it down on the table.</p><p>The Demogorgon looked down at the card, mandibles parting in greed, before it looked back up to Jack, chittering.</p><p>“I need you to get me to Earth.”</p><p>---------------</p><p>The prison guard threw the envelope onto the bed, as rain poured and lightning sparked outside.</p><p>River opened it, reading the card, before smiling mischievously.</p><p>-------------</p><p>The alarms in Stormcage blared as the guards reacted quickly.</p><p>“Sir, she’s doing it again.” A guard spoke into the phone. “Doctor Song, sir, she’s… packing. Says she going to some planet called ‘America.’”</p><p>-------------</p><p>A yellow school bus drove down a lone road in the vast desert of Utah. It came to a slow stop with squealing brakes, and the door opened, letting its passenger out.</p><p>“Thanks!” Sarah Jane directed to the driver.</p><p>“You’re very welcome!” The man replied in a thick southern American accent, before driving away.</p><p>Sarah Jane looked around, bag on her back heavy as she searched for any sign of the Doctor.</p><p>“Well, well, well!” A voice from behind suddenly spoke up. “Sarah Jane Smith!”</p><p>The woman whipped around. “Jack Harkness.” She recognized, holding up her invite. “You got one of these too?”</p><p>“Yeah,” The man confirmed, holding up his invite. “The Doctor sure does love being cryptic.”</p><p>“Howdy!” A voice called from across the way, both snapping over to face the source.</p><p>There, on the bonnet of a ’59 Edsel Villager, was the Doctor, wearing a… cowboy hat?</p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane smiled.</p><p>The Time Lord laughed, pointing as he jumped off the hood of the car. “Sarah Jane! Come here!” He pulled her into a hug.</p><p>“You’ve been quite busy, haven’t you?” She asked.</p><p>“Ah, you saw me!” The Doctor smiled. “Stalker.”</p><p>“Aw, how come I don’t get any of that?” Jack asked.</p><p>The Doctor’s head snapped over to him, and he grinned again. “Jackie! No, not Jackie!” Nevertheless, he pulled the man into a hug as well. “Gah!” He recoiled as he was shocked. “Sorry, was playing around with Tesla before coming around here, still haven’t got rid of all the latent static, but never mind that! Mwah!” He kissed Jack square on the lips, pulling back.</p><p>Jack laughed, pointing at the Doctor’s head. “Nice hat.”</p><p>“It’s a Stetson, I wear a Stetson now.” The Doctor rubbed his suspenders. “Stetsons are cool.”</p><p>A gunshot echoed out, the hat flying off the Time Lord’s head. The three of them whipped around, Jack on the quick draw, but thankfully not needing to fire.</p><p>River smiled, haloed in the sun as she blew the barrel of the gun, before holstering it. “Hello Sweetie.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right then,” River began, flipping through her diary, as the Doctor looked through an almost identical book. After they’d all arrived, the Doctor had ushered them into his car (That Villager actually belonged to him, funny. Jack used to have a car like that back in the sixties before it got stolen.) before taking them to a diner not far from where they’d been dropped off.</p><p>Rolling in the Deep by Adele played over the radio, as the Doctor and River sat across from each other in a booth.</p><p>“Where are we?” River asked. “Have we done Easter Island yet?”</p><p>“Um…” The Doctor flipped through his book clumsily, like he wasn’t used to navigating it. “Yes!”</p><p>River laughed. “Oh, they <em>worshipped </em>you there.”</p><p>“I know! I saw the statues!”</p><p>Jack and Sarah Jane took some milkshakes from the woman in the blue dress working the counter, walking back over to the booth.</p><p>“Jim the Fish.” The Doctor read from his diary.</p><p>“Oh, Jim the Fish!” River clapped her hands. “How is he?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, both of them making way for the others to sit down. “Still building his dam.”</p><p>“Doc,” Jack sat down next to River. “I think the waitress has a crush on you.” He glanced over at the short woman, before she went red and ducked out of sight. “Heh.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked between the two. “Sorry, what are you doing?”</p><p>“Syncing diaries.” Jack answered for them. “Common time traveler tactic. Knowing other time travelers, you don’t always meet in the correct order, so, you have to keep a tally. I used to keep one, actually. Published it, too. Oh, the royalty checks…”</p><p>Sarah Jane rolled her eyes and looked at the Time Lord. “So, what is all this about? Normally if you want to talk you just pop in, not-“ She held up the envelope, “Whatever this is.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded, granting her that. “I’ve been running.” He confessed. Odd, it was usually way more work than that to get the Doctor to speak up about anything. “Faster than I’ve ever run before. But now it’s time for me to stop… and when I do, I’m going to need you all there with me.”</p><p>“You don’t need the preamble.” Jack told him seriously. “We’re here already, whatever it is.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “It’s a picnic… and then a trip. Somewhere we’ve never been together, somewhere brand new… Space. 1969.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0082"><h2>82. The Impossible Astronaut</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Salud!” The Doctor held up a bottle, clinking it against the others’ glasses.</p><p>“Salud!” They echoed.</p><p>The four had journeyed to a nearby lake. Lake Silencio. They were sitting on a tablecloth, just enjoying the quiet serenity of the place, basking in the sunlight.</p><p>“So,” Jack began, “When are we going to ’69?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged.</p><p>“And since when do you drink wine?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“I’m eleven-hundred and three.” The Doctor responded. “I must’ve drunk it sometime.” He threw the bottle back…</p><p>And immediately spat the wine out.</p><p>“Oh, oh that’s horrid!” The Doctor wretched. “I thought it’d taste more like grape juice!”</p><p>“Where’s El?” Sarah Jane asked.</p><p>“Oh, you know…” The Doctor scratched his arm. “Around.”</p><p>Jack frowned, looking at the Time Lord’s arm. “Is that a new watch?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced down at it, at the black, watch-shaped device on his left wrist “Hm? Oh, yes, last one got… eaten.” He looked back at Jack. “Long story.”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked up and frowned. There seemed to be a figure, tall and slender, standing in front of the sun, chittering distantly. “What’s that?”</p><p>“Hm?” Jack turned to her.</p><p>Sarah Jane turned to him. “What?”</p><p>“You said something.”</p><p>“…No, I didn’t.”</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor suddenly pointed to the horizon. “The moon! Look at it. Course, you lot did a lot more than look, didn’t you? Big, silvery thing up in the sky. Hard to resist, wasn’t it?”</p><p>“The moon landing was in 1969.” Jack recalled. “Is that where we’re heading?”</p><p>“Oh, a lot more happens in ’69 than anyone remembers.” The Doctor quietly replied. “Human beings… never thought I’d get done saving you.”</p><p>A diesel engine echoed in the distance, and all heads turned to it, as a F-350 pickup rolled onto the sand.</p><p>The Doctor got to his feet, as the driver got out, looking in their direction. The Time Lord waved, and the driver returned it.</p><p>“Oh my god!” River shot to her feet, looking to the water.</p><p>The others turned, looking to see what she was seeing.</p><p>There, standing only ankle-high in the water, was a being in a sealed spacesuit, taking breaths with its respirator.</p><p>“You all need to stay back.” The Doctor instructed, as the Astronaut began to step out of the water, onto the sand. “Whatever happens now, you do not interfere.” He turned to them. “Clear?” He began walking down the beach, the three standing back at the picnic site.</p><p>“That’s an astronaut…” Jack recognized, with furrowed eyebrows. “What’s an Apollo astronaut doing in a lake?”</p><p>The Doctor finally reached the Astronaut. “…It’s okay, sweetheart.” He told the Astronaut. “I know it’s you.”</p><p>The being, with a shaky hand, reached up, pushing the reflective visor up.</p><p>The Time Lord drew a breath, blue eyes squinting in the sun. “Well then.”</p><p>The three onlookers watched in confusion as the Doctor had a discussion with the Astronaut. The being raised its arm, like it was going to shake the Doctor’s hand.</p><p>A green bolt of energy shot out from the Astronaut’s fingers, hitting the Doctor dead centre in the chest.</p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane screamed in fear, running forward.</p><p>“Sarah!” River grabbed her to pull her back. “Stay back! The Doctor said stay back!”</p><p>The Astronaut fired again, as Jack and River had to fight to keep Sarah Jane from getting caught in the crossfire.</p><p>“No!” Sarah Jane howled. “No!”</p><p>“We have to stay back!” Jack agreed with River, as across the way, another shot tore into the Doctor, and the Time Lord fell to his knees.</p><p>Even as far away as he was, they could see the sorrow and regret in those blue eyes as he looked to them.</p><p>The Doctor’s skin began to glow a bioluminescent gold. “I’m sorry…” He took a deep breath and held his arms out.</p><p>The others watched in horror as the Time Lord prepared to let regeneration take him once again.</p><p>The Doctor threw his head back, and energy began to explode out from him like a raging fire.</p><p>The Astronaut fired again, and the regeneration immediately ceased, the Time Lord falling down.</p><p>“NO!” River screamed, running that way, as the Astronaut turned to head back into the lake. “DOCTOR!”</p><p>“Doctor!” Sarah Jane echoed, as she and Jack followed.</p><p>The two women fell to the ground at the Doctor’s side, as Jack unholstered his revolver, looking to River for guidance.</p><p>“River…” Sarah Jane held the Doctor’s head, practically pleading. “River!”</p><p>The scanner beeped, and she looked up to Jack, nodding.</p><p>Hands shaking with uncontainable rage, Jack fired all of the rounds he had in the revolver’s chamber. The Astronaut continued walking, entirely unscathed, into the water.</p><p>“…Course not.” Jack swallowed, turning around.</p><p>Sarah Jane wept, sitting down next to the Doctor’s inert body. “He can’t be dead… He can’t be… It isn’t possible…”</p><p>“Whatever it was…” River sniffled, “It killed him in the middle of his regeneration cycle. His body was already dead… he just didn’t make it to the next one.”</p><p>“B-But…” Sarah Jane spluttered like a crying baby. “It has to be a clone, or a duplicate, or…”</p><p>“I believe I can save you some time.” An aged man, the driver of the truck, walked up, holding a gas can. “That most certainly is the Doctor… and he is most certainly dead. He said you’d…” He sat the gas can down. “Need this.”</p><p>They looked to it. Jack in realization, River in much of the same, and Sarah Jane in horror.</p><p>“Gasoline…” Jack swallowed.</p><p>“A Time Lord’s body is a miracle, even a dead one.” River sniffled. “There are empires out there that’d rip this planet apart just for a single cell. We can’t leave him here. Or anywhere.”</p><p>Sarah Jane, shaking, looked over the Doctor’s face. “Wake up… come on, Doctor, please… you looked dead before… Wake up!” She cried, pressing her head to his chest. Total silence. “What do we do…?”</p><p>“…we’re his friends.” River swallowed. “We do what the Doctor’s friends always do.” She picked up the canister. “As we’re told.”</p><p>Jack’s eyes drifted across the lake, to an old wooden boat laying on the beach. “If we’re going to do this… we’re going to do it properly.”</p><p>------------</p><p>Placing the Doctor’s body into the boat, they doused it in gasoline completely, using the whole can to make sure that nothing would survive. Jack was the one to push the boat out, before he returned to the shore.</p><p>He loaded only a single round into his revolver and took aim. With a solemn squeeze of the trigger, the bullet struck, setting the gasoline on the boat alight.</p><p>The group stood there, watching. Sarah Jane cried, while Jack stood respectfully, and River… she was unreadable, but it was plain to see that it was killing her.</p><p>They watched as the fire burned away at the Doctor’s flesh, clothes turning to ash as hair burned and blood boiled.</p><p>The boat started to sink, and Sarah Jane leaned into Jack, turning her head from the sight.</p><p>“Who are you?” River asked of the aged truck driver. “Why did you come here?”</p><p>“Same reason as you.” He answered, pulling out a blue envelope, presenting it to River. The number 5 was stamped on its outside. “Doctor Song, Sarah Jane, Captain Harkness.” He named each one. “I’m Canton Everett Delaware the Third. I won’t be seeing you again.” He looked to them. “But you’ll be seeing me.” He placed a baseball cap on his head, walking back up the beach with the gas canister.</p><p>“…five.” River breathed, spinning around.</p><p>“What?” Jack questioned.</p><p>“The Doctor numbered the envelopes.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“You got three,” River pointed to Sarah Jane, “You got four,” She told Jack, “I was two, and Canton was five.”</p><p>“So?” Jack questioned as they entered back into the diner from before.</p><p>“So, who was one?” River questioned.</p><p>Laughter across the way grabbed their attention, and they turned to look, Sarah Jane’s heart sinking. “El…” She breathed.</p><p>River turned to look, and she gulped as well. “No… oh no…”</p><p>El looked up from her plate, to the three. “Aunt Sarah? River? Jack?” She recognized.</p><p>Will turned around, looking at them. “Uh… El, you know these guys?”</p><p>“Yeah.” The girl confirmed, eyes looking at each one in confusion. “What’s going on?”</p><p>River’s eyes locked on the envelope, and she inhaled. “Number one.” She picked it up, showing it off to the others.</p><p>The door behind River opened, someone stepping out.</p><p>The three that had been on the beach turned around in shock.</p><p>The Doctor, green eyes twinkling with delight, pointed at each one of the new arrivals, a straw clutched in his teeth.</p><p>“This is cold…” River breathed. “Even by your standards, this is <em>cold.</em>”</p><p>“Or ‘hello!’ as people used to say.” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“…Doctor?” Sarah Jane stepped forward, looking him up and down.</p><p>“Just popped out to get my special straw.” The Doctor held up the plastic tube. “It adds more fizz.” He glanced at El. “I like fizzy things, don’t you like fizzy things?”</p><p>Sarah Jane walked slowly up to the Doctor, pacing around the Time Lord. “You’re okay… how can you be okay?”</p><p>“Hey, of course I’m okay,” The Doctor pulled Sarah Jane in, “I’m always okay, I’m the king of okay. …No, I’m not, that’s a rubbish name,” He pulled away, walking excitedly over to Jack, “Captain Jack Harkness, now <em>that’s </em>a good name!” He threw his arms around the ex-time agent. “Hello, Jack!” He released the man, slowly turning to River. “And Doctor River Song. Oh, you bad, bad girl, what trouble have you got for me this time?”</p><p>A crack rang throughout the diner, as River’s palm smacked against the Doctor’s cheek.</p><p>“…I’m assuming that’s for something I haven’t done yet?”</p><p>River nodded slowly with angry tears. “Yes, it is.”</p><p>“Good, looking forward to it.”</p><p>Will looked to El. “Who are these people?”</p><p>El shrugged. “River.” She pointed. “I <em>think </em>she might be married to dad.” She whispered to Will. “Aunt Sarah.” She explained. “She got pulled in cause dad couldn’t be bothered with the humany stuff.” She finally pointed at Jack. “And… Jack. Don’t really know much about him other than he’s a harlot.”</p><p>The four standing ignored the two.</p><p>“How…” Jack poked the Doctor in the chest, before his eyes widened. “Oh.”</p><p>“Oh?” The Doctor repeated, looking to each one demandingly. “’Oh’ what?”</p><p>“’Oh…’” Jack began, searching, “It’s a hell of a coincidence you’re here.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “I was invited.” He took the envelope from River. “Date, time, map reference,” He threw it back on the table. “Same as you lot I imagine. Don’t believe in coincidences on this scale.”</p><p>“Um…” El held her hand up, looking to each one of them, “What’s going on?”</p><p>River’s head snapped to the Doctor. “How old are you?”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “That’s a bit personal, don’t you think?”</p><p>“Tell us.” River pressed. “Tell us how old you are.”</p><p>The Doctor looked affronted. “Nine-hundred-and-nine.”</p><p>Sarah Jane groaned, rubbing her temples. She hated time travel looping back on itself like this.</p><p>“So, where does that leave us?” River demanded. “Jim the Fish? Have we done Jim the Fish yet?”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled. “Who’s ‘Jim the Fish?’”</p><p>Will blinked, looking between all of them. “I have… <em>no </em>idea what’s going on here.”</p><p>“Neither do I, what are we all doing here?” The Doctor petulantly raised his voice, looking to the three from the beach demandingly.</p><p>“We’ve been…” River searched the other two. “Recruited. Something to do with space 1969, and a man called Canton Everett Delaware III.”</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes suspiciously narrowed as he chewed on his straw. “Recruited by who?”</p><p>“Somebody who trusts you more than anybody else in the universe.” River answered.</p><p>The Doctor turned around. “And who’s that?”</p><p>River smiled, pain barely concealed behind her outwardly light attitude. “Spoilers.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0083"><h2>83. I Am The Doctor in the White House</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“1969!” The Doctor pulled one of the levers on the TARDIS console. “That year’s easy! Funny how some years are easy, now 1482,” He looked to Sarah Jane, leaning on the railing, “That one’s <em>full </em>of glitches. Now then, Canton Everett Delaware III, that’s his name, yeah? How many of those can there be? Well, three, I suppose.”</p><p>Sarah Jane pushed off the railing and went to the underside of the console, River following as she shook her head.</p><p>The Doctor looked confused to El and Will, both shrugging, before he turned to Jack. “Jack, is everybody cross with me for some reason?”</p><p>The former time agent awkwardly pointed to the steps. “I’ll go and check.” His coat swished as he marched down the steps.</p><p>The Doctor waited for them to get out of sight before he turned to Will and El. “Did they say anything to you two?”</p><p>El shook her head. “No. They came into the diner going on about the people you trusted and then River noticed the letter.”</p><p>“Yeah, speaking of,” Will pointed, “Who’s it from?”</p><p>The Doctor held up the blue envelope. “Don’t know. Me, probably.” He threw it over his shoulder.</p><p>“What, you can do that?” Will questioned. “Send letters to yourself just like that?”</p><p>“It’s just a time traveler’s version of a reminder.” The Doctor replied, a control on the console hissing as it let out some air. “Happens way more often than you think.”</p><p>“But… why?” El held up her finger.</p><p>“Sorry?”</p><p>“Why go through this trouble?” El asked. “There have to be better ways to get people where you want them.”</p><p>“There are.” The Doctor granted. “I’ll probably only do it like this because I remember getting the letter like that. Like how your ‘sister’ knows what spoilers she can give you because she remembers hearing them when she was you.”</p><p>“Wait,” Will looked between them, “’Sister?’”</p><p>El gasped, looking at the Doctor. “You know? But she tried to be secret about it.”</p><p>“There’s nothing that goes on in this TARDIS that I don’t hear.” The Doctor replied, looking down with a scowl. “Including talks about my impending death.” He muttered, falling to the floor, looking over the edge of the platform. “I’m being extremely clever up here and the only ones standing around looking impressed are El and Will, what’s the point in having the rest of you!?”</p><p>“H-Hold on.” El quietly told the Doctor. “Did you say… death?”</p><p>“It’s not that hard to work out.” The Doctor got back to his feet, looking at her. “Mysterious summons to the one day in time in space that this particular incarnation of me is prophesized to die on? That’s not coincidence, it’s railroading. And I refuse to be a part of it.” He fiddled with the controls. “Oh, and don’t let on you know.”</p><p>“But… did you die?” El asked meekly. “Really?”</p><p>“I don’t know.” The Doctor shrugged noncommittally. Truth be told, he wasn’t that concerned about it. Part of being a time traveler in general was getting used to mentions of your death popping up before it happened. “But trust me, you don’t have anything to worry about.”</p><p>“…promise?”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Cross my hearts.” He turned around to the console, flicking a switch. “Time isn’t a straight line.” He launched into an explanation, hearing the others come up the steps. “It’s a bit bumpy-wumpy. There’s boring stuff like Tuesdays and Sundays, and then you have Saturdays! Big temporal tipping points where absolutely anything can happen! The TARDIS can’t resist them, like a moth to a flame.” He winked at River. “She loves a party. So, I give her 1969 and NASA cause that’s space in the sixties, and Canton Everett Delaware III, and she points me-“ He tapped the scanner, “Here!”</p><p>“Washington D.C.” Sarah Jane read from the scanner. “April 8<sup>th</sup> 1969. So, why haven’t we landed.”</p><p>The Doctor switched the scanner off. “Cause that’s not where we’re going.”</p><p>“Oh.” Jack blinked. “Well then… where?”</p><p>“Home!” The Doctor answered. “Or, at least, you two are.” He pointed at Jack and Sarah Jane. “You’ve got Torchwood stuff to deal with,” He told the former time agent, “And you’ve got a gang of kids who need looking after. And you, Doctor Song, back to prison. And us!” He twirled around, pushing a lever on the console up as he walked around to the seat. “We’re off to see the anti-grav Olympics. Or it could be the knitting convention. I always get those two mixed up.” He flopped down in the seat, rubbing his face, looking at them. “What? A mysterious summons, you think I’m just going to drag those two into it?” He asked, gesturing to El and Will. “Who sent those messages?” He pressed, already knowing the answer. In fairness, it was more of a way of gauging their willingness to cooperate rather than an actual inquiry.</p><p>“He knows you know.” El told them.</p><p>The Doctor nodded seriously. “Don’t play games with me. Don’t <em>ever </em>think you are capable of that.”</p><p>“You’re going to have to trust us this time.” River told him.</p><p>“Trust you?” The Doctor repeated. “Sure. But first, tell me this; who did you kill?”</p><p>Will inhaled, looking to El. “She killed someone?” He whispered.</p><p>El nodded. “She knows dad in the future, and she killed someone.” The girl shrugged. “That’s… all we really know.”</p><p>“Now, I love a bad girl me…” The Doctor growled. “But trust you? Ha… no.”</p><p>“Trust me.” Sarah Jane spoke up, the Doctor looking towards her.</p><p>The Doctor slowly walked over. “Okay.”</p><p>“You have to do this… and you can’t ask why.” Sarah Jane shakily told him.</p><p>“Are you being threatened?” The Doctor shook. “Is someone making you say that?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Are you lying?”</p><p>Sarah Jane shook her head.</p><p>“Then swear to me. Swear to me on something that matters.”</p><p>“…December 15<sup>th</sup>, 1973.” Sarah Jane finally answered.</p><p>The Doctor tilted his head inquiringly.</p><p>“The day we first met.”</p><p>“Okay… my life in your hands.” He suddenly refilled with energy, running to the console. “So! Canton Everett Delaware the Third!” He tapped into the console keyboard. “Who’s he?”</p><p>“Don’t know.” Jack admitted.</p><p>“…cool name, though.” Will granted.</p><p>Jack snapped his fingers, pointing at Will. “Right. …who’re you?”</p><p>“Oh, um, I’m Will.” The boy awkwardly introduced himself. “Will Byers.”</p><p>“Nice to meet you, Will Byers.”</p><p>“That’s a child!”</p><p>“I WASN’T EVEN FLIRTING THAT TIME!”</p><p>The Time Lord rolled his eyes. “So, Mister Delaware!”</p><p>“Ex-FBI.” River recited, reading from the information on the console. “Got kicked out.”</p><p>“Does it say why?” Sarah Jane inquired.</p><p>“It says here ‘behavioral issues.’” River answered.</p><p>“FBI…” El repeated, eyebrows knitting together. “Like… the bad men?”</p><p>“No, they were CIA.” The Doctor replied. “Hm… says here he was sent for by the president for a special meeting. Who was president in ’69?”</p><p>“Richard Milhous Nixon.” River answered. “Watergate, Vietnam…”</p><p>“Oof.” Will flinched. “Glad Hopper’s not here. I don’t think we could stop him from beating the everloving hell out of Nixon.”</p><p>“Still, not all bad.” River continued. “There’s some good.”</p><p>“Not enough.” The Doctor retorted.</p><p>“Hippie!” River flung in a scandalized manner.</p><p>“Archeologist.” The Time Lord shot right back, still staring at the scanner. “Okay!” He ran around the console. “Since I don’t know what I’m getting into this time, I’m being discreet, setting the engines on silent!” He flung the lever, a metallic screeching echoing through the console room.</p><p>The others except for River and El flinched, shielding their ears.</p><p>El rolled her eyes, pulling the lever back.</p><p>The Doctor popped back around from the other side. “Did you do something?”</p><p>El shook her head. “No. What has you upset?”</p><p>The Doctor stared inscrutably. “Putting the outer shell on invisible. Haven’t done this in a while, it takes a lot of power!”</p><p>“Wait,” Will held up a finger, “You can make the TARDIS invisible?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded, twisting a dial, the lights in the hexagonal roundels going brighter than the sun.</p><p>River huffed, twisting the dial back.</p><p>“Uh,” The Doctor poked his head back around, “Did you touch something?”</p><p>The woman played dumb, shaking her head. “Just admiring your skills, sweetie.”</p><p>“…Good. You might learn something.” He moved back around. “Now, I can’t check the scanner, doesn’t work while it’s cloaked. So, just give me a mo.’” He hopped down the steps, running to the door. “Whoa!” He directed to the others as they tried to follow. “You lot, wait a moment. We’re in the middle of the most powerful city of the most powerful nation on Earth. Let’s take it slow.”</p><p>He opened the door, and stepped out, leaving the others in the console room alone.</p><p>------------</p><p>The air where the TARDIS’s exterior should’ve been rippled just slightly as the Doctor stepped out, gently closing the door behind him.</p><p>Nixon stood facing out the window, the young version of Canton looking at him, as a recording played back on tape.</p><p><em>“Hello?” </em>Nixon on the recording anxiously greeted. <em>“This is President Nixon, who is this? Is it… you again?”</em></p><p>
  <em>“Mister President…”</em>
</p><p>Canton looked up, eyebrows knit together. “A child?”</p><p>
  <em>“This is the president, yes.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I’m scared, Mister President. I’m scared of the spaceman.”</em>
</p><p>“A little girl?” Canton asked.</p><p>“Boy.” Nixon corrected.</p><p>“How can you be sure?” Canton inquired.</p><p>Nixon said nothing, letting the tape speak for itself.</p><p><em>“What spaceman? Where are you phoning from? Where are you right now? </em>Who <em>are you?”</em></p><p>
  <em>“Jefferson Adams Hamilton.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor frowned, reaching into his pocket for a notepad and pencil. Even if the caller was young, the voice modulation was all wrong to be a boy’s voice. So, why was she lying? Hm… maybe once he got this sorted out he could bring her on the TARDIS too. El could use an actual sister, not just a version of herself from the future.</p><p>
  <em>“Jefferson, listen to me-“</em>
</p><p>The line went dead with a dial tone, the tape still spinning.</p><p>“Surely the bureau can handle this?” Canton suggested.</p><p>“These calls happen every day, no matter where I am.” Nixon retorted. “How do I know the bureau isn’t involved? I can’t trust any-“ He turned around, cutting himself off as he registered the Time Lord.</p><p>The Doctor, still writing, looked up, and gestured for the President to continue. Canton shot to his feet as the Doctor went back to writing before he looked up again, finally registering in his mind that he had been caught. “Ah. Hello…” He slowly began to step back. “Oh, look this is the <em>Oval </em>Office… I was looking for the, uh,” He bumped into a lamp, almost knocking it over, as Nixon hit the buzzer for security. “I-I-I-I-I-I’ll just be off, then… shall I?” The Time Lord turned around, and took a step…</p><p>“GAH!” The Doctor promptly smacked into the invisible TARDIS, falling to the floor.</p><p>------------</p><p>The console room shuddered, lights flickering.</p><p>River rolled her eyes. “Every time.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Don’t worry!” The Doctor shot back up, holding the side of his face. “Always does that when it’s- Ah!” Canton tackled the Doctor. “No! Stop that!”</p><p>----------</p><p>“I thought he said the scanner wouldn’t work.” Sarah Jane said, as River pulled the monitor around.</p><p>“I know!” River replied, “Bless!” She said, going to flick a switch.</p><p>“No!” El smacked her hand away. “<em>That </em>one!”</p><p>“Oh, right.” River went for it, turning the monitor on.</p><p><em>“Stop that! OW!” </em>He yelled out in pain as a squad of Secret Service agents stormed into the room. <em>“River, El, have you got my scanner working yet!?”</em></p><p>“Oh…” River shook her head. “I <em>hate </em>him.”</p><p><em>“No you don’t, augh!” </em>The Doctor grunted as a knee dug into his back. <em>“GUYS MAKE HER BLUE AGAIN!”</em></p><p>River pulled back a lever as El turned one of the dials down to zero.</p><p>-----------</p><p>With a flash of bright white light, the TARDIS’s exterior reappeared in the room, lights glowing proudly as the blue box stood there.</p><p>The Doctor smiled, laughing quietly as the bemused agents’ grip on him loosened in shock.</p><p>“What the hell is that?” Nixon breathed, staring at the blue box.</p><p>“Mister President,” The Doctor flicked through a binder, kicking his feet up on the President’s desk. The Secret Service agents whipped around to face him in surprise, drawing their weapons. The Doctor rolled his eyes, throwing the binder on the desk. “That child told you everything you need to know, but you weren’t listening, but never mind, cause the answer’s yes!” He smiled. “I’ll take the case!” He looked to each one of the men and huffed. “Fellas, the guns, really? I just walked into the highest security office on the planet put a big blue box on the rug… and you think you can just shoot me?”</p><p>“THEY’RE AMERICANS!” River came sprinting out of the TARDIS.</p><p>“Don’t shoot!” The Doctor shot to his feet, holding his hands up. “Definitely no shooting!”</p><p>“Don’t shoot us either…” Will slowly came out, followed by El, Jack, and Sarah Jane. “Definitely not in need of being shot today.”</p><p>“Yeah, look,” El did little jazz hand motions, “Hands up, see?” Even though she could’ve pulled every gun out of their hands there, but that was only more likely to make the agents see the TARDIS crew as a threat, not the opposite.</p><p>“Who the hell are you!?” Nixon demanded.</p><p>“Sir,” Canton’s hand calmly shot out, “You need to stay back.”</p><p>“But,” Nixon spluttered, “Who are they!? And what is that box!?”</p><p>The Doctor blinked as his hands dropped. “It’s a Police Box! I know they’re not <em>that </em>rare in this day and age! I’m your new undercover agent from Scotland Yard! Codenamed the Doctor.” The Time Lord lied, “These are my top operatives; Jumpin’ Jack Flash,”</p><p>Jack sarcastically laughed. “Oh, you couldn’t have come up with something creative.”</p><p>“Miss Bannerman.”</p><p>“Jack, when the Doctor starts assigning us codenames… Don’t heckle him!” Sarah Jane hissed.</p><p>“Shirly Temple.”</p><p>El blinked. “I don’t understand that reference.”</p><p>“Bowl-Cut Byers.”</p><p>Will scowled. “I told you that in confidence!”</p><p>“And Missus Robinson.”</p><p>River shook her head. “I hate you.” She grumbled.</p><p>“No, you don’t.”</p><p>“Who are you!?” Nixon pressed.</p><p>“Nah, boring question.” The Doctor replied, pointing. “More interesting question, who’s phoning you, cause Canton three was right, that was definitely a girl’s voice, which means there’s only one place in America she could be phoning from.”</p><p>Canton’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Where?”</p><p>“Do not engage with the intruder, Mister Delaware!” A black Secret Service agent, Carl, and the one originally sent to retrieve Canton in the first place, ordered.</p><p>“You heard everything I heard, it’s simple enough to explain.” The Doctor stated. “Give me five minutes. On the other hand,” He sat down on the table, kicking his feet up again, “Lay a finger on me, or my friends, and you’ll never, ever know.”</p><p>Canton pointed to the TARDIS. “How’d you get it in here? You didn’t <em>walk </em>it in.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Clever, eh?”</p><p>“Love it.”</p><p>Carl spluttered. “Do not compliment the intruder!”</p><p>“…Five minutes?” Canton repeated.</p><p>“Five.” The Doctor confirmed.</p><p>“Mister President that man is a clear and present danger-“</p><p>“Mister President,” Canton cut Carl off. “That man <em>walked </em>in here. With a big blue box and five other people. And that’s the man he walked past. One of them’s worth listening to. I say we give him five minutes, see if he delivers.”</p><p>“Thanks, Canton.” The Doctor offered.</p><p>“If he doesn’t… I’ll shoot him myself.”</p><p>“Not so thanks.”</p><p>“Sir, I cannot recommend-“</p><p>“Shut up, Mister Peterson!” Nixon ordered. The man slowly nodded. “All right.”</p><p>Canton looked the Doctor in the eyes. “Five minutes.”</p><p>The Doctor pulled his feet down as the Secret Service agents lowered their guns. “I’m going to need a SWAT team ready to mobilize, street-level maps covering the whole of Florida, a pot of coffee, a pack of Jammie Dodgers, and a Fez!” He drummed his fingers on the desk.</p><p>“…Get him his maps.” Was all Canton allowed.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0084"><h2>84. Help is on the Way</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Anything yet?” The Doctor asked, looking over the edge of the enormous map in his hands.</p><p>“Nope.” El replied.</p><p>“Nada.” Jack concurred.</p><p>“Nothing here.” Sarah Jane echoed.</p><p>“Not a thing.” River answered.</p><p>“You know, when you dragged me into the TARDIS and said, ‘all of time and space,’ I didn’t think that included sitting in a room and reading maps.” Will looked at the Doctor. “Why are we searching Florida anyway?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Canton concurred in his gravelly voice. “I’d like to know the answer to that as well.”</p><p>“Because, that’s where NASA is.” The Doctor replied, unfolding a different map on the desk. “The little girl mentioned a spaceman. There aren’t any other places in this country where you can get a spacesuit, besides… I’m following another lead.”</p><p>“Another?” Nixon questioned.</p><p>“I remember…” Sarah Jane muttered, staring at the doorframe.</p><p>“Sorry?” The Doctor spoke up, looking at her.</p><p>Sarah Jane shook her head in surprise, looking at the Doctor. “What?”</p><p>“You said you remembered something.” El replied.</p><p>“…no, I didn’t.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes, turning to the map. “Anyway, don’t worry about the hunch, it’s a helpful hunch.”</p><p>The phone on Nixon’s desk rang, all heads snapping to it.</p><p>“The kid?” Canton assumed.</p><p>“Should I answer it?” Nixon asked.</p><p>“Ah, here!” The Doctor pointed to the map. “The only place in the United States she could be calling from!” He looked to the others. “It’s obvious when you think about it.”</p><p>Canton looked over the map, an amazed smile crossing his features. “You, sir, are a genius.”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “It’s a hobby.”</p><p>“Mister President,” Canton took the map, “Answer the phone.”</p><p>Nixon nodded, hand slowly moving over, taking the handset out of the cradle as he hit the button on the recorder.</p><p>“Hello?” The President spoke. “This is President Nixon.”</p><p><em>“It’s here!” </em>The little girl on the other end hysterically wailed. <em>“The Spaceman’s come for me! It’s going to eat me!”</em></p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, throwing his jacket back on. “There’s no time for a SWAT team! Mister President,” He addressed, motioning the others to cram into the TARDIS, “Tell her help’s on the way! Canton!” He looked to the ex-FBI agent. “On no account follow me into that box and shut the door behind you!” He stated, sprinting inside.</p><p>“What the hell are you doing!?” Canton demanded, charging after them.</p><p>The TARDIS doors slammed shut, and the time capsule dematerialized, those present in the office watching with dropped jaws.</p><p>“Jefferson,” Nixon addressed, eyes locked on the empty space where the TARDIS had been, “It’s all right. Help is on the way.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Doctor, El, and River darted around the TARDIS console, trying to keep the timeship flying relatively smoothly and quickly.</p><p>Canton stood at the door, frozen in shock, as he looked around.</p><p>“Now, Jefferson isn’t a girl’s name!” The Doctor threw a lever. “It isn’t her name either!”</p><p>Sarah Jane frowned. “How can you be sure?”</p><p>“Because!” The Doctor replied. “Jefferson, Adams, Hamilton! River?”</p><p>“The surnames of three of America’s founding fathers.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded with a smile, chuckling. “Two of ‘em fancied me.”</p><p>Canton spun around on his feet, blankly pointing.</p><p>“You alright?” Jack offered the agent a disarming smile. “Coping?”</p><p>“See, Nixon asked that girl two questions!” The Doctor began. “Who she was and where she was calling from! Now, El, would <em>you </em>be willing to tell a total stranger your name even if you sought them out for help?”</p><p>El gasped. “She was answering the question about the call!”</p><p>“It’s bigger…” Canton finally spoke up with an exited grin. “On the inside!”</p><p>Jack patted the man on the shoulder. “Oh yeah. How about later I give you the guided tour?”</p><p>“STOP IT!” The Doctor ordered from the console.</p><p>“I was just being a good host!”</p><p>“Now!” The Doctor ran around to the other side of the controls. “Where do you think you’re going to find three big names like that in a row!?”</p><p>“Uh, I’ll bite…” Will shyly spoke up. “Where?”</p><p>“Here!” The Doctor answered, landing the ship. “Come on!” He dashed down the stairs, running over to the door. He stopped, right in front of Canton. “Jack, you take care of this, but if I find out you got pregnant again!” He let the threat hang, leading the others out.</p><p>“…Again?” Canton repeated in bemusement.</p><p>The Face of Boe shrugged. “It happens occasionally.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So,” El looked around. “Where are we?”</p><p>“About five miles from Cape Kennedy Space Center.” The Doctor waved a tiny American flag in the air. “1969, year of the moon, everybody’s gearing up for the big shot in July.”</p><p>“Big shot in July?” The girl repeated.</p><p>“Oh, that’s right, they skimped on your education in the lab.” The Doctor shook his head. “Three astronauts get shot up in a rocket on July sixteenth, make the landing on the twentieth.”</p><p>River checked a phone, frowning, as not even a dial tone could be heard.</p><p>“But,” Will spoke up, “Why come… here?” He asked, looking around.</p><p>Sarah Jane nodded in agreement. “Doesn’t look the sort of place that a lost little girl would consider safe. If you were a scared child trying to hide, would you choose a run-down place like this?”</p><p>“…It depends.” El replied. “On what you’re running from.”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged, spinning around in the chair. “In any case, I have no clue. But, when Nixon asked her where she was hiding, she did what any lost child would do.”</p><p>“Which is?” River questioned.</p><p>“Check the street signs.” The Doctor ran over to the window, pulling open the blinds. “Jefferson, Adams, Hamilton.” He pointed to the intersection below. “The one place in all America, probably, with those exact three names in one intersection. And Doctor Song, you’ve got that face on again.”</p><p>“What face?” River replied.</p><p>“The ‘he’s hot when he’s clever’ face.”</p><p>“This is my normal face.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “You bet it is.”</p><p>“Oh, shut up.”</p><p>“Not a chance.”</p><p>“Eugh.” El grimaced. “Please don’t make me see that again.”</p><p>The Doctor checked the phone as well, frowning, as Canton and Jack finally emerged from the TARDIS.</p><p>“We’ve moved…” Canton looked around. “How could we have…”</p><p>“You haven’t even got to space travel yet!?” The Doctor demanded of Jack.</p><p>The time agent shut the door. “I was going to cover that when we got to time travel.”</p><p>“Time travel?” Canton repeated.</p><p>“Braveheart Canton,” The Doctor spun around. “Come on!” He took the lead out of the room.</p><p>“H-How long has Scotland Yard had this?” Canton asked of Jack.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“It’s a warehouse of some kind,” River swept the area with her torch. “Disused.”</p><p>“You realize this is almost certainly a trap, yes?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“I noticed the phone, yes.” River replied.</p><p>“What about the phone?” Sarah Jane inquired, as they proceeded into the dark warehouse.</p><p>“Cut off.” The Doctor answered.</p><p>“So, how did the child phone from here?” River posed.</p><p>“We’re walking into a trap, great…” Will muttered, going to El for protection. “The only thing I regret about my death is not being around to see what happens when my mom tries to kill you.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Oh, don’t be like that, whoever set the trap may not want to kill us! …horribly maim, maybe.”</p><p>“So,” El spoke up, rolling her eyes as Will cowered slightly behind her, “Work out why she’d come here to hide?”</p><p>“Still no clue.” The Doctor admitted. “Why don’t we just find her and ask?”</p><p>They entered into a section of the warehouse with a metal table suspended under a light. Thing is, for being as simplistic as it looked, it was setting off Sarah Jane’s scanner watch like a Geiger counter.</p><p>“Non-terrestrial.” River cross-referenced her own scans with Sarah Jane’s. “Definitely alien.”</p><p>“Which is weird, because look at this!” The Doctor reached into a box, pulling out a single astronaut helmet. “Human in origin, state of the art as of this time and place.”</p><p>“Stolen?” River suggested.</p><p>“What,” El looked to her, “By aliens?”</p><p>“Apparently.” The Doctor said, putting the helmet over his head.</p><p>“But…” Will frowned. “Why? This stuff could barely make it to the moon. Why would they steal it if they probably already have something better?”</p><p>“Maybe because it’s cooler!” The Doctor excitedly flipped the visor up. “Look how cool this stuff is!”</p><p>Will blinked. “<em>Cool </em>aliens?”</p><p>“Well, what would you call me?”</p><p>“An alien.” Sarah Jane immediately replied.</p><p>“OI!” The Doctor pulled the helmet off.</p><p>“I think he’s good now!” Jack called from across the room.</p><p>“Ah, good, back with us, Canton?” The Doctor walked over.</p><p>Canton, looking at the ceiling, pointed nonchalantly to the TARDIS. “I like your wheels.”</p><p>The Time Lord chuckled. “That’s my boy. So, little girl! Find her!” He ordered.</p><p>--------------</p><p>Sarah Jane waited for the others to split up, before she turned to River. “River-“</p><p>“I know what you’re thinking.” The woman scanned a hose with a flesh-like substance hanging off the end. “You’re thinking if we can find the Astronaut and neutralize it now, we can stop it before it kills the Doctor in 2011.”</p><p>“…yes.” Sarah Jane confirmed.</p><p>“You’ve traveled with the Doctor for a long time,” River told her, “You should know it doesn’t work like that.”</p><p>“I know, but…” Sarah Jane replied. “There must be <em>something.</em>”</p><p>“…maybe if we weren’t there. Maybe if there was only one of us on that beach with the Doctor.” River began solemnly. “But those events are now part of <em>our </em>personal histories. We can’t undo it.” She frowned, looking at the hoses that ran across the floor into a circular grate. “Doctor?” The Time Lord ran over, as River pulled the grate off. “Look at this.”</p><p>“So, where does that go?” The Time Lord wondered.</p><p>River held the scanner over the hole. “There’s a whole network of tunnels running under here.”</p><p>“Life signs?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“No.” River answered. “Nothing that’s showing up.” She started climbing in.</p><p>“Be careful!” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>“Careful?” River repeated, shaking her head. “I tried that once, ever so dull.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Alright then, shout if you get in trouble.”</p><p>“Don’t worry,” River flirtatiously looked up. “I’m <em>quite </em>the screamer.”</p><p>The Doctor’s face flushed red as Jack erupted into boisterous laughter.</p><p>“There’s one spoiler I’m allowed to give you!”</p><p>“So…” Canton looked to the Doctor. “What’s going on here?”</p><p>“Nothing!” The Time Lord insisted, whipping around. “She’s just a friend!”</p><p>Jack’s laughter descended into uncontrollable wheezing giggles.</p><p>“Dad,” El hissed, “I think he meant the <em>aliens</em>.”</p><p>“Ah!” The Doctor awkwardly grinned. “Okay!”</p><p>------------</p><p>River descended the ladder into the tunnels, looking around with her torch. The same, fleshy hoses were running up the walls, lining the ceiling.</p><p>The light hit the corner of the wall, and she jumped, as three, grey aliens in black suits chittered, growling at her.</p><p><strong><em>“River… River…”</em></strong> The three called to the woman.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Canton frowned, picking up a small piece of abandoned tech. “So… I was in a bar, having a drink. Tell me honestly; am I still there?”</p><p>Jack looked through the thin grating separating them. “Not a chance.” He flashed a charming smile.</p><p>River, across the room, came up the grating, breathing heavily. “All clear!” She called. “Just tunnels! Nothing down there I can see! Uh… give me five minutes.” She requested. “I want to have another look.”</p><p>“<em>Stupidly </em>dangerous!” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Yep!” River shot back, smiling. “I like it too! El,” She looked to the girl, “Look after him.” She pointed at the Doctor.</p><p>El nodded. “Right.”</p><p>The Time Lord rolled his eyes as River climbed back down the grate. “Will, go with her.”</p><p>The boy jumped. “What!? Me!?”</p><p>“Relax,” The Doctor patted him on the shoulders, “It’s just empty tunnels. Worst case scenario, you get to follow around a pretty woman without being called weird.”</p><p>Will reluctantly looked to the grate and dragged his feet as he unwillingly proceeded. “Hold on, River… I’m coming too…”</p><p>Sarah Jane looked to the Doctor demandingly. “Are you <em>trying </em>to scar that boy mentally?”</p><p>“No!” The Doctor bobbed on his feet. “It’s called ‘trial by fire.’ Or in this case trial by dark, dank, tunnel system.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Will shakily let go of the ladder as he reached the bottom, slowly walking over to River. He shined the torch in her direction, frowning, as she was double over, breathing heavily.</p><p>“Are you alright?” Will inquired.</p><p>River looked to him, surprised for a moment. “Ah, yes, yes… Did you come down here on your own, or did he send you?”</p><p>“Sent me.” Will answered. “Honestly, I didn’t want to come down here.”</p><p>“Well, I think it’s very brave you came down here regardless.” River smiled kindly, taking her scanner. “The Doctor probably just figured it’d be a good way to overcome your fear.”</p><p>“Yeah, fear of dark, wet tunnels…” Will shivered, looking at the vines--no, hoses--running through the tunnels. He looked to the woman. “El said you were someone who knew the Doctor in the future. Does that mean you know… us too?”</p><p>“Well, spoilers.”</p><p>“I’m not asking for details, just…” Will pressed. “Yes or no.”</p><p>“…Yes.”</p><p>“And, do I…” Will began, shakily. “Do I ever get over it? You know… what happened to me?”</p><p>“Will,” River looked to him, “Trust me when I say that I’d like nothing more than to tell you, but there’ll be consequences, not just for me or you, but <em>everyone</em> if I did. That being said… you are quite possibly the bravest, kindest man I know.”</p><p>“Good, okay…” Will breathed.</p><p>“But for that to start happening, you need to start being courageous.” She told him. “You know what that is, right? Not being fearless, but being afraid, and still doing what you need to do.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>“So, dark tunnels that remind you of the Mind Flayer’s tunnels,” River’s hand shot out, “How about we take it together?”</p><p>Will nodded, taking a breath, as he tightly grasped the woman’s hand, allowing her to take the lead. He looked at the ceiling, frowning in disgust at the hoses coated in organic material. “What <em>are </em>those?”</p><p>“Power conduits, maybe?” River suggested, tapping her scanner. “Interesting. These tunnels are old. <em>Really </em>old.”</p><p>Will raised an eyebrow. “How old?”</p><p>“It looks like… I can’t even guess.” River replied. “How can they be that old and nobody notice them?” They hit an end of the tunnel a metal door set into the wall.</p><p>“A… maintenance door?” Will frowned.</p><p>River’s hand went out to the handle, experimentally, pushing and pulling at it. “Locked.” She rolled her eyes, going to run a lockpick program with her scanner. “Why do people always lock things?”</p><p>“Because they generally don’t want people getting in?” Will suggested. “Something very important they don’t want people seeing?”</p><p>“Yep.”</p><p>“Something that the people who’re trying to protect it would <em>kill </em>to protect it.”</p><p>“Almost definitely.”</p><p>“…you’re still going to try to break in, aren’t you?”</p><p>River grinned. “Oh, yes.”</p><p>“Is this even a good idea!?”</p><p>“God, I hope not.”</p><p>Will looked on the woman as she went to pick the lock. “Yeah, you and the Doctor being married, there’s <em>nothing </em>else I could conceivably think of.”</p><p>“Oh?” River’s eyebrows shot up interestedly. “And who suggested that?”</p><p>“El did.”</p><p>“Well… she’s very perceptive.”</p><p>“Wait, is she <em>right!?”</em></p><p>River laughed. “I said nothing of the sort.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, my working theory is that you’re him, just… from the future.” Will admitted.</p><p>That caused River to laugh even harder. “What, on <em>Earth, </em>gave you that idea!?”</p><p>“You guys have kinda the same energy.” Will answered with a shrug. “And, well, I’ve only seen people get that flirty when they’re checking themselves out in the mirror.”</p><p>“I suppose, from a certain perspective, my past is his future.” River somberly replied. “We’re not just meeting out of order, you see… we’re meeting in reverse order. Every time we meet, I know him more… and he knows me less.”</p><p>“Oh…” Will sympathetically breathed. “That’s gotta be rough.”</p><p>River smiled sadly. “Jane used to say that the Time Traveler’s Wife was based on our relationship.” Something clicked into place as the door panel began to glow orangey-red. She got to her feet, pushing the door open, taking the lead into the next section of tunnels.</p><p>Unlike the carved out, almost natural tunnels they had just been in, this section was more constructed, uniform, deliberate. Like an actual building, geometric and made of metal.</p><p>In the center of the chamber, hanging from six metal legs, was a glowing column not unlike the time rotor of the TARDIS, with four panels attached to it on each side.</p><p>“What is it?” Will asked, looking to River.</p><p>The woman approached, running a scan on it, before placing her hand to the circular control in the center of the panel. “These tunnels… they’re not just here, they’re everywhere. They’re running under the surface of the entire <em>planet</em>. They’ve been here for centuries.”</p><p>Something in the hallway behind him sparked, and Will turned around. The boy, jumped, as lightning arced through the air.</p><p>“WILL!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Canton held one of the metal hoses, frowning at it.</p><p>“So,” Jack addressed the man, “You got sacked cause of attitude problems.”</p><p>“No,” Canton replied, “I just wanted to get married.”</p><p>“Ah…” The time agent’s eyes sparkled. “I thought I noticed you checking me out a few times.”</p><p>Canton glanced away. “Doctor… Who, exactly?”</p><p>“Ah, well, you wanna get me to talk,” Jack winked. “You’re gonna have to get me way, <em>way </em>drunk.”</p><p>“Jack, enough.” Sarah Jane admonished. “We’ve got other things we have to be doing.”</p><p>“Like what!?” The man shot back. “It’s a dark warehouse with nothing but old junk, what could demand our attention?”</p><p>“Help me!” The voice of the little girl from the phone screamed from across the warehouse.</p><p>The Doctor shot up. “That, for instance!”</p><p>“Help!” The girl repeated. “Help me!”</p><p>Canton and Jack looked to each other, drawing their guns. The two men nodded, running off in that direction.</p><p>“Uh… El, stay here!” The Doctor ordered, running to follow.</p><p>“Like hell!”</p><p>“Language!” Sarah Jane chastised, following.</p><p>They reached the corner, popping their heads around.</p><p>“Canton!” The Doctor ran over to the men laying on the ground. “Jack! Okay, okay… they’re fine, just a whack to the head!”</p><p>“Help!” The girl called. “Help me!” The three remaining conscious looked around. “Help me!”</p><p>Heavy boots thudded against the concrete floor, all three heads turning to the source.</p><p>The Astronaut walked into the room.</p><p>“That’s it…” Sarah Jane breathed in fear “The Astronaut.”</p><p>The Astronaut raised its hand, and Sarah Jane, flashing immediately back to the beach, dove for one of the guns on the ground.</p><p>The Astronaut lifted its visor, the face of a little girl no more than six or seven locked inside the helmet. “HELP ME!” She cried.</p><p>“GET DOWN!” Sarah Jane bellowed.</p><p>The Doctor looked to her, horrified. “What’re you doing!?”</p><p>“Saving your life!” The woman replied.</p><p>“NO!” The Doctor roared.</p><p>Sarah Jane pulled the trigger.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0085"><h2>85. Apollo 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Three months later--July 1969. Valley of the Gods, Utah.</em>
</p><p>“Ah!” El huffed as she and Sarah Jane ran down the unpaved desert road. Tally marks covered their skin and parts of their clothes, running slightly from the sweat. “Ah!”</p><p>Engines roared in the distance as vehicles, being driven by government agents, tore up the road to get to their targets.</p><p>The two could see a Jeep approaching down the other end of the road, and turned, running to a dirt cliff.</p><p>“AH!” They came to a stop, as the Jeeps pulled up behind them.</p><p>The doors opened, four government agents stepping out.</p><p>The two breathed heavily, knowing what was about to happen.</p><p>“Canton.” Sarah Jane addressed.</p><p>“Miss Smith.” Canton replied, before turning to El. “Miss El.” He gestured at one of his agents, the man throwing down two black bags onto the ground.</p><p>El swallowed. “Is that a body bag?”</p><p>“Yes.” Canton answered.</p><p>“It’s empty.” Sarah Jane remarked.</p><p>“So it is.”</p><p>El shook with restrained rage. “<em>Why </em>are you doing this? Can you even <em>remember?”</em></p><p>Canton leveled his revolver.</p><p>“The warehouse?” The girl pressed.</p><p>
  <em>Sarah Jane stood in shock, abject horror upon realizing just what she had done.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Jack, Canton, up, up!” The Doctor ordered, pulling the two men to their feet, pushing them away from the Astronaut.</em>
</p><p>Canton stood there, unwavering.</p><p>
  <em>“Up!” River shouted to Will, the boy climbing out of the tunnels first. “Get out! Out!” The two rejoined the others, following the Doctor’s lead as he ran back to the TARDIS.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“What the hell is going on!?” Canton demanded.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The Doctor stopped, turning around. “Look behind you!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“There’s nothing behind me!” Canton insisted.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Look, Canton, look!” The Doctor repeated.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The man turned around, jaw dropping at the four-fingered alien wearing a suit. “Can-ton…” The creature addressed in an echoey voice, like it was speaking in a long tunnel.</em>
</p><p>Canton fired two shots, and El and Sarah Jane fell to the ground.</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>Groom Lake, Nevada. AKA Area 51</em>
</p><p><em>“All visitors to remain behind the yellow line.”</em> A voice over the announcement system ordered, as Canton walked past the instructional signs to the black square in the centre of the room.</p><p>A bearded man sat in a chair, locked in a straitjacket, looking ahead silently.</p><p>“We found Miss Smith, and your daughter.” Canton came to a stop directly in front of the man. “They both had… strange markings on their arms.” He turned the picture around for the Doctor to see. “Do you know what they are?” He tossed the file onto the ground.</p><p>The Doctor looked down at it, before looking back up at Canton. “Why don’t you ask them?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>New York City</em>
</p><p>Sirens wailed in the distance as River surveyed the area with her scanner, glancing down at her arm every few seconds.</p><p>The woman moved into the next area of the construction site, as something metallic clanged in the distance. One of the cut plastic sheets was blown up by the wind, allowing River to see the tall, grey alien on the other side.</p><p>River gulped, shakily marking a tally on her am. “I see you… I see you.”</p><p>“Doctor Song!” Canton called out in a sing-song tone, as he and his team stormed the incomplete floor.</p><p>River gasped, running, as she forgot the alien entirely.</p><p>“Go, go, go!” Canton ordered, as River sprinted to the incomplete edge. “Don’t move!”</p><p>The woman came to a stop, turning around fearfully.</p><p>“It’s over.” Canton stated.</p><p>“They’re here, Canton!” River replied, “They’re everywhere!”</p><p>“I know.” The man replied. “America’s being invaded.</p><p>“You were invaded a long time ago!” River retorted. “America is occupied!”</p><p>“You’re coming with us, Doctor Song.” Canton sneered. “There’s no way out this time.”</p><p>The woman smiled. “There’s always a way out.” She held out her arms to her sides, and tipped back, falling right off the edge.</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Doctor watched, intrigued, as two scientists placed a black brick into place with the rest, slowly building up a wall around him.</p><p>“We found Doctor Song.” Canton approached, though the Doctor still kept his eyes on the brick.</p><p>“These bricks, what are they made of?” The Time Lord shook his head. “Where is she?”</p><p>“She ran.” Canton answered. “Off the fiftieth floor.”</p><p>“I’d say that looks like zero-balanced dwarf star alloy…” The Doctor breathed, watching as the edges of the newly placed brick glowed blue, before the glow vanished, the brick becoming a smooth part of a featureless black wall. “Densest material in the known universe. Nothing can get through that. You’re building me a perfect prison…” He turned around, glaring at Canton. “And it still won’t work.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>
  <em>Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona</em>
</p><p>Jack kicked the blue metal door at the top of the dam open, sprinting out, Will following in his wake.</p><p>“I-“ Will cut himself off, as agents surrounded them on all sides.</p><p>“…close your eyes, bud.” Jack solemnly recommended, Will doing just that. “What the hell are you waiting for?”</p><p>“Waiting for you to run.” Canton replied. “It’d look better… then again, looks aren’t everything.” He took aim, firing twice.</p><p>-------------</p><p>Canton, flanked by a team of army men, each one dragging a body bag, walked into the Doctor’s completed dwarf star prison.</p><p>“…Is there a reason you’re doing this?” The Doctor demanded of Canton.</p><p>“I want you to know where you stand.” Canton replied, as the men dropped the body bags.</p><p>“In a cell!” The Doctor bitterly replied, looking to the smallest bag. No way to tell if it was Will or El… it didn’t matter much now, he supposed.</p><p>“In a perfect cell.” Canton retorted. “Nothing can penetrate these walls. Not a sound, not a radio wave…” He placed his fingers in a series of holes on the wall. The door outside slid, sealing shut, the wall becoming completely uniform a moment later. “In here, you are literally cut off from the rest of the universe.” Canton looked to the wall, then back to the Doctor. “So, I guess that means they can’t hear us, right?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Good work, Canton. Door sealed?”</p><p>“You bet.”</p><p>The Time Lord shot to his feet, effortlessly shrugging off his chains and the straitjacket.</p><p>“AH!” Sarah Jane ripped her body bag open from the inside.</p><p>Jack followed, looking to Canton demandingly. “Did you <em>have </em>to use real bullets on me!?”</p><p>Canton shrugged, as the Doctor went over to check on El, the girl sitting up, pulling herself out. “He said you could handle it.”</p><p>“YOU KNOW,” Will breathed heavily, “THESE THINGS COULD <em>REALLY </em>DO WITH AIR HOLES!”</p><p>“Never had a complaint before.” Canton retorted.</p><p>Sarah Jane got to her feet, as the Doctor did stretches to get his muscles back working properly. “Isn’t going to look weird that you’re stuck in here with us?”</p><p>“Weird, but not alarming.” Canton answered. “They know there’s no way out of this place.”</p><p>“Exactly,” The Doctor tugged on his braces, “They know that whatever it is we’re doing, we’re not going anywhere.” He leaned, smacking against thin air that rippled into the shape of a big, wooden box. The Time Lord snapped his fingers, orange light spilling out as the TARDIS doors opened. “Shall we?”</p><p>El smiled, running into the TARDIS first.</p><p>“What about Doctor Song!?” Canton ran in after them. “She dove off a <em>rooftop</em>!”</p><p>“Don’t worry, she does that!” The Doctor replied. “El, Will, open all the doors to the swimming pool!” He ordered, setting the TARDIS into motion.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Wind whipped past River, blowing her hair all over the place as she fell. She began shifting her weight back, putting her hands into a swan dive motion.</p><p>Water suddenly splashed, as she fell through the doors of a police box parked sideways on the sidescraper.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“So,” The Doctor, freshly shaven of the atrocious beard, pushed the lever on the console forward. “We know they’re everywhere. Not just a landing party, an occupying force. And they’ve been here a very, very long time.” He explained, as River walked up, drying her hair. “But nobody knows that, cause nobody can remember them!”</p><p>“So,” El asked, “What are they doing here?”</p><p>“No idea!” The Doctor answered, landing the TARDIS. “We’ve got a secret weapon!”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor sprinted out onto the green grass first, listening to the distant birds, and the echoing announcements over the loudspeaker.</p><p>In the distance, supported by a metal skeleton, was a Saturn V rocket, undergoing the final preparations for launch.</p><p>River looked to the Doctor questioningly. “Apollo 11’s your secret weapon?”</p><p>“No, no, no, that would be silly!” The Doctor shot back. “It’s Neil Armstrong’s foot…”</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor pulled a bit back on a gun shaped-injection device, placing the end to Canton’s palm, before firing.</p><p>“Ow!” Canton winced, as something was lodged into his palm.</p><p>“So!” The Doctor turned to the console. “Three months deep cover, what’ve we found out?”</p><p>“Well, um, a start…” Will awkwardly began. “They are <em>everywhere</em>. Ah!” He let out a pained groan, as the Doctor shot his palm as well.</p><p>Jack nodded, concurring. “Not just America, the whole <em>planet</em>.”</p><p>“Canada, Mexico, the UK, Japan, South America,” Sarah Jane listed off, as the Doctor got her next, “Every place we visited during the three months faking being on the run, there have been those creatures.”</p><p>“But the greatest concentration of them,” River began, looking at the scanner, “Has been here.”</p><p>“Here.” The Doctor gently took El’s hand, applying the injector to it, before kissing the scarred spot gently. “There you go, all better.”</p><p>“Thanks.” El smiled.</p><p>“So, you’ve all seen them,” Canton pointed, “But you don’t remember them?”</p><p>“You’ve seen them too.” River replied. “That night at the warehouse, remember?”</p><p>Canton tilted his head.</p><p>“While you were pretending to hunt us down,” Jack picked up from River, “We saw hundreds of the things. Thousands. But we still have no clue what they look like.”</p><p>“I’m telling you guys; they look like the Scream.” Will insisted. “I don’t understand why else I’d draw it after seeing one.”</p><p>El shook her head. “Sarah Jane took pictures, but that doesn’t help. Even they work the same.”</p><p>“It’s like,” Sarah Jane piped up. “They edit themselves out of your memory the moment you look away. The moment they get out of sight, it’s all forgotten.”</p><p>Canton nodded. “And that’s why you marked your skin.”</p><p>El nodded. “The only way we know for sure. Even dad and I can’t remember them and our brains are… different.”</p><p>“But…” Canton rubbed his temple. “How long have they been here?”</p><p>“That,” Jack pointed, “Is the million-dollar question. And what we’ve spent the last few months on our globetrotting adventure trying to figure out.”</p><p>Will huffed. “Not easy if you forget everything you learn.”</p><p>“But how long do you think?” Canton pressed.</p><p>“As long as there’s been something in the corner of your eye,” The Doctor replied, moving around the console, “Breathing under the bed, footsteps in an empty room.” He looked down Canton. “They’ve been running your lives for a long, long time now, so keep this straight in your heads.” He directed to everyone. “We’re not fighting an alien invasion. We’re leading a revolution against the oldest slave masters in existence. And today, the battle begins.”</p><p>“How?” Canton questioned.</p><p>“Like this.” The Doctor’s hand shot over to River’s, as he quickly applied the injector to her. “HA!”</p><p>“Ow!” River shook away the pain in her hand.</p><p>“Nano-recorder!” The Doctor held up a little pill-sized device, black tips on both ends. “Fuses to the cartilage in your hand.” He loaded it into the injector, applying it to himself. “Then it tunes itself directly to the speech centres in your brain. It’ll pick up your voice no matter what, telepathic connection. So, the moment you see one of the creatures, you activate it,” The Doctor held up his hand, pressing a finger to the scar, the tissue of the scar pulsating orange. “And describe aloud exactly what you’re seeing.” He pressed it again, the light going steady, before he pressed it one final time.</p><p>
  <em>“And describe aloud exactly what you’re seeing.”</em>
</p><p>“Cause the moment you break contact, you’ll forget it ever happened.” The Doctor finished. “The light will glow when you’ve left yourself a message. You <em>keep </em>checking your hand, at all times. If you’ve had an encounter, that’s the first you’ll know about it.”</p><p>Canton blinked. “Well, why didn’t you tell me this before we started?”</p><p>“I <em>did</em>.” The Doctor replied. “But these creatures are memetic hazards, even second-hand information about them is erased over time.” The Time Lord typed something into the typewriter. “I couldn’t refresh it cause I couldn’t talk to you.” The Doctor glanced over Canton’s shoulders.</p><p>The man glanced that way, before turning back, straightening the Doctor’s bow tie.</p><p>Canton blinked, finding that everyone was looking at him. “What?”</p><p>“Look at your hand.” River instructed, staring in that direction.</p><p>Canton glanced down, finding the steady glowing light in his palm. “Wha- But I-“</p><p>“What does it mean if the light’s flashing, what did I just tell you?” The Doctor pressed.</p><p>“I-“</p><p>“Play it.” The Time Lord instructed.</p><p>Canton blankly reached to his palm, pressing the scar.</p><p>
  <em>“My god! How did it get in here!?”</em>
</p><p><em>“Keep eye contact with it,” </em>The Doctor instructed on the recording, <em>“When I say, turn back, and straighten my bow tie.”</em></p><p>Canton felt something watching him, and he turned around.</p><p>There it was, one of the creatures, standing there, still.</p><p>“How did it get in here?” Canton asked, stiff.</p><p>“The TARDIS is extrapolating a three-dimensional holoprojection from the pictures in Sarah Jane’s phone.” The Time Lord explained. “Take a good, long look.”</p><p>The hologram faded, and Canton blinked.</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers. “You just saw an image of one of the creatures we’re fighting. Describe to me exactly what you just saw.”</p><p>“I can’t.”</p><p>“Neither can I.” The Doctor unsettlingly agreed. “Now, you straightened my bow tie because I implanted the idea in your head while you were looking at the creature. Like, post-hypnotic suggestion, except way more powerful.”</p><p>El inhaled. “They can do that to people too. Sometimes I’m doing something and forget why I’m doing it.”</p><p>“A parasite species.” Jack commented. “All you need to do is influence the right humans in the right places and you could live in comfort.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded, tapping commands into the navigational keyboard. “Now, little girl, what does she have to do with all this?” He wondered. “And why put her in a spacesuit? More to the point, where did they get her?”</p><p>“That could be anywhere.” Sarah Jane replied. “Even combing recent missing reports, there’s just no way to narrow it down.”</p><p>“Ah, but there is!” The Time Lord retorted. “Wherever she was, she was probably close to that warehouse. Else, why would you go hiding in there instead of going to the authorities? But, that job,” He looked to Jack, Sarah Jane, and Canton, “Is for you lot. The rest of us are off to Apollo 11!”</p><p>River frowned. “What for?”</p><p>“Well, do you think it counts as sabotage if I’m not trying to break it?”</p><p>“Very probably.” River replied.</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes, throwing a lever.</p><p>“Where are we supposed to figure out where she came from?” Canton questioned.</p><p>“Children’s homes, duh.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0086"><h2>86. The Silence</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jack’s fist banged against the old wooden doors of Graystark Hall Orphanage, the trio waiting patiently for the caretaker of the place to come to the door.</p><p>The door slowly opened, revealing an aging man, slightly haggard and disheveled, on the other side.</p><p>“Hello?” He greeted in a Cajun accent.</p><p>“FBI.” Canton flashed his badge, “I’m Agent Delaware, these are-“</p><p>“Agents Mulder and Scully.” Jack finished, struggling not to giggle as Sarah Jane glared at him. “Sorry.”</p><p>Canton shook his head. “You must be Doctor Renfrew. Can we come in?”</p><p>The man pointed into the building. “The children are asleep.”</p><p>“We’ll be very quiet.” Sarah Jane replied.</p><p>“Is there…” Renfrew looked between the three. “A problem?”</p><p>“We’ve got a missing kid on our hands.” Jack replied.</p><p>“Well, what are you-“ Renfrew cut himself of. “Yes, yes…. Come in, please.” He blankly opened the door.</p><p>The trio glanced at each other. Something was wrong here.</p><p>Jack wasn’t trying to flirt.</p><p>The door creaked as Sarah Jane took the lead, pushing it open to follow.</p><p>“This way.” Renfrew guided them to the large steps, leading them up. “Please excuse the writing.” He apologized, gesturing to the words ‘GET OUT’ and ‘LEAVE NOW’ written in red paint. “It keeps happening. I… I try to clean it up as best I can.”</p><p>Jack looked at the words warily. “The <em>kids </em>do that?”</p><p>“Yes. The children.” Renfrew answered with a self-satisfied nod as the lights flickered. “It must be, yes…” He turned his hand, the same words written on his wrist in black ink, but he didn’t seem to register it. “Anyway, my office is this way.” He led them over.</p><p>“We almost didn’t come here.” Canton told Renfrew. “As I understand it this place was closed down in ’67.”</p><p>“That’s the plan, yes.” Renfrew replied, moving up the steps again.</p><p>“The plan?” Sarah Jane repeated.</p><p>“Not long now…”</p><p>Jack glanced at the others, sufficiently unsettled. “Doctor Renfrew… You are aware it’s nineteen-sixty-<em>nine</em>, yes?”</p><p>“Uh, no, no. We close in ’67. That’s the plan, yes…”</p><p>“You misunderstood, sir.” Canton told the man, the old doctor stopping to turn around. “It’s nineteen-sixty-nine <em>now</em>.”</p><p>Renfrew spluttered. “Why are you saying that? Of course it isn’t.”</p><p>“July.” Canton named the month.</p><p>“My… my office is this way.” Renfrew mumbled, like he knew something was wrong, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it, taking the lead down a hallway.</p><p>Jack turned to Sarah Jane. “Go take a look around.”</p><p>“What?” Sarah Jane crossed her arms. “In the big building probably chock full of hostile aliens?”</p><p>“The most likely place to lay a trap is the office, where this guy is <em>leading us.</em>” Jack argued.</p><p>“…Good point.” The woman conceded. “I’ll check upstairs.”</p><p>“Be careful,” Jack recommended, running to join Canton.</p><p>Reaching the top of the steps, Sarah Jane pushed the old door open, entering into one of the common rooms sectioned off for girls.</p><p>An old wooden horse rocked from the blowing wind, as Sarah Jane pushed further into the room, looking around.</p><p>The woman pulled out her mobile and dialed the first number.</p><p><em>“Sarah?” </em>The Doctor replied.</p><p>“I think we’ve found the right place.” The woman responded.</p><p><em>“How do you know?” </em>The Time Lord inquired.</p><p>“Those creatures have been here.” Sarah Jane replied. “But the entire place is empty. There’s only one old man here and… well, he’s not doing too well, it seems.”</p><p><em>“The repeated memory wipes cause dementia and Alzheimer’s-like conditions with enough of ‘em.” </em>The Doctor explained. <em>“Find out what you can get, and get outta there.”</em></p><p>Sarah Jane frowned, as the Doctor whispered quietly.</p><p>“Where are you?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor registered footsteps in the distance. “Gotta go, got company.” He slammed the panel he was working on shut, quickly sitting up.</p><p>He looked out to the two guards glaring.</p><p>“Don’t worry, I put everything back how I found it.” He blinked, glancing at the connector in his hands. “Oh, well, there’s always a bit left over, isn’t there?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The door behind Sarah Jane slammed shut, the woman whipping around. She went to go for the knob, about to sonic lipstick her way through, before she froze, seeing the faint glow from her hand.</p><p>She pressed her hand to the scar.</p><p><em>“I see them.” </em>The recording of her whispered. <em>“But I think they’re asleep. Get out? Do you understand? Get out!”</em></p><p>Sarah Jane, against her better judgement, looked up, gulping.</p><p>Her face began to feel damp, and she wiped at it, black ink staining her fingers.</p><p>The door slowly creaked open behind her, and she walked out, unaware that she was now being followed.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Now, one more time, sir.” One of the people at NASA, Gardner, if his nametag was true, sat across from the Doctor, pestering him. “How the hell did you get into the command module!?”</p><p>“I <em>told </em>you, I’m on a top secret mission for the President.”</p><p>“Well, maybe if you’d just get Mister Nixon to assure us of that, sir,” Gardner shot back as the Doctor tried chewing his way through the chain of the handcuffs, “That’ll be real nice.”</p><p>The Doctor flippantly tossed his hair. “I sent him a message.”</p><p>“Oh, really?” Gardner sarcastically replied.</p><p>The doors across the auditorium opened, and Nixon came striding in, River on one side, El and Will on the other, humming ‘Hail to the Chief.’</p><p>“Hello,” Nixon granted, everyone in the room hurriedly snapping off salutes to the man. “I believe it’s Mister Gardner, is that correct?” He shook the man’s hand. “Head of security?”</p><p>“Ah, yes, yes sir, Mister President.” The man replied, awestruck.</p><p>“Mister Grant, is it?” He offered his hand to the other man.</p><p>“Yes, Mister President!”</p><p>Nixon chuckled. “The hopes and dreams of millions of Americans stand here today at Cape Kennedy. And you’re the men who guard those dreams. On behalf of the American people, I thank you.”</p><p>“You’re welcome, Mister President.” Gardner replied humbly.</p><p>“I understand you have a baby on the way, Mister Grant.”</p><p>The man nodded. “Yes, sir?”</p><p>“Boy or girl?”</p><p>“I’m just hoping for a red-blooded American, sir.”</p><p>Nixon laughed. “A red-blooded American will do just nicely! Now, fellas, listen. This man here, “He gestured to the Time Lord, “Codenamed the Doctor, is undertaking some work for me personally.”</p><p>The Time Lord waggled his fingers with a big grin.</p><p>El rolled her eyes, and turned her attention to the model of the landing module on the desk, Will following her example.</p><p>“Oh, cool, I got one of these out of a model kit once…” Will whispered, looking it over.</p><p>“Could you,” Nixon requested, “Cut him a little slack?”</p><p>“Um, Mister President, he <em>did </em>break into Apollo 11.” Gardner informed.</p><p>Nixon looked to the Doctor in surprise.</p><p>‘Sorry.’ The Time Lord mouthed.</p><p>“W-Well, I’m sure he had good reason for that.” Nixon chuckled uncertainly. “But I need you to release him now so he can get on with some very important work for the American people. Could you do that for me?”</p><p>“Uh…”</p><p>“Son. I <em>am </em>your commander-in-chief.”</p><p>“Uh, then I guess that would be fine, Mister President.”</p><p>The MP standing guard nearby walked over, unlocking the handcuffs, allowing the Doctor to shoot to his feet.</p><p>“Thank you!” The Time Lord started walking back to the TARDIS. “Bye-bye!”</p><p>“Carry on, gentlemen.” Nixon ordered, turning to follow.</p><p>El poked the satellite dish on the top of the model lander and jumped as it popped off. “Oh, uh…” She awkwardly looked around.</p><p>“America salutes you.” Will offered, giving them a sloppy salute, before running to catch up with the others, towing El along.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“This place,” Canton began, looking through the files, “It’s been closed for years. What’ve you been doing the whole time?”</p><p>“Oh… the child.” Renfrew blankly responded. “She must be cared for. It’s important. That’s what they said.”</p><p>Jack looked to the man warily. “What <em>who </em>said?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Sarah Jane walked to the topmost level of the building, coming to a bronze metal door at the end of the hallway. The lock was on the outside of the door, a metal bar running across, with two Greek letters inscribed into the upper half.</p><p>“Now…” Sarah Jane muttered. “Why would a child need a door like this?”</p><p>Slowly pushing it open, Sarah Jane looked inside, and was put off by just how… normal the room looked. A bed was pushed up against the wall, a single bathroom just off the other end of the room. Some toys were scattered around, and a dresser was put near a wall.</p><p>Sarah Jane walked over, looking at the pictures.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Canton,” Jack muttered, holding some files. “Take a look at this.”</p><p>“What?” The man walked over, glancing at Renfrew, careful not to tip the caretaker off.</p><p>“Reports.” The time agent pointed at them. “The creatures that are <em>actually </em>in charge of the place have quite the bureaucracy it seems.”</p><p>Canton frowned, looking at the text. “’Initial gene synthesis unsuccessful.’” He read, not understanding half the words.</p><p>Jack moved over, taking the file.</p><p>“’Genetic samples from Hawkins decayed beyond usefulness.’” Jack read, muttering.  “’Recommend locating alternate source of… subject’s… genetic material?’” The time agent began flipping through.</p><p>Canton looked to Jack. “I don’t understand. What is it?”</p><p>“They were trying to clone something.” Jack replied. “Or rather, some<em>one.</em>”</p><p>---------</p><p>Sarah Jane frowned, peering at each picture. They all had the girl from the Astronaut suit, but… it was just her. <em>Only </em>her. Not even any other children. They looked more like surveillance captures than actual photos.</p><p>Heavy falls came from behind, and Sarah Jane whipped around.</p><p>The Astronaut was there. The hand reached up, pushing the visor all the way up.</p><p>Sarah Jane stood, staring down the little girl locked in the astronaut suit, breathing shakily. “Who are you?”</p><p>The girl didn’t respond.</p><p>“I’m,” Sarah Jane stuttered, “I’m sorry I shot at you. I thought you were the monster trying to kill my friend, and I hadn’t thought it might’ve been you in the suit until it was too late. If it helps… I’m glad I missed.”</p><p>The girl swallowed, shivering.</p><p>“My name’s Sarah Jane.” The woman said. “What’s yours?”</p><p>“Please… help me.” The girl begged, looking more like the suit was driving her movements rather than the other way around.</p><p>Rattling filled the air, as some of the creatures came into the room, standing around the girl.</p><p>They advanced.</p><p>---------</p><p>The door to Renfrew’s office banged, the man getting up to answer it. “It’s just some questions.” He informed the being on the other side. …I see.” He turned, slowly going back to his chair.</p><p>“Who was that?” Jack questioned. “Doctor Renfrew!”</p><p>The man looked to the time agent in confusion. “Who was who?”</p><p>Jack and Canton looked at each other, swiftly moving to the door.</p><p>The door was opened from the other side, the rattling creature stepping inside, as Jack drew his gun.</p><p> “Hold it right there!” Jack ordered, pointing his revolver at the alien. “Now… I’m going to ask you this once.”</p><p>Canton indiscreetly activated the recorder in his palm.</p><p>“Who and what are you?” Jack asked it. “Where did you come from? What are your plans? What kind of weapons do you have? TALK!”</p><p>The alien tilted its head. <strong><em>“This planet is ours. We have ruled it since the wheel and fire. We have no need of weapons.”</em></strong></p><p>Jack raised a sarcastic eyebrow. “Oh, yeah?” He pulled the trigger twice, aiming for the torso, the creature falling to the ground. “Not a good idea to tell that to a guy holding a gun! Stay here, make sure it doesn’t move!” He ordered, running out into the hallway. “Sarah Jane!”</p><p>----------</p><p>“You have to tape everything that happens in this office.” The Doctor instructed. “Every <em>word.</em> Or we won’t know if you’re under their influence.”</p><p>“Doctor,” Nixon pushed himself up, “You have to give me more than that! What were you doing to Apollo 11?”</p><p>“A thing.” The Time Lord responded. “A clever thing. Now, no more questions, you have to trust me, and no one else.”</p><p>“Dad!” El, out of breath, pulled the TARDIS doors open, holding the phone off the console. “It’s Jack! There’s trouble!”</p><p>The Doctor, not even asking questions, dashed back to the TARDIS, flying away.</p><p>Nixon sighed, flopping back in his chair.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Jack!” Sarah Jane called from the room at the top of the building. “Canton! Anyone!? It’s dark, I can’t see a thing!”</p><p>“Sarah!” Jack rammed into the door with his arm. “Stay calm, I’m gonna blow it open!” He took aim.</p><p>“Alright, gun down, we’re here!” The Doctor ran over to the door, pushing Jack out of the way. “Sarah!? Sarah Jane!?”</p><p>“I can’t see!”</p><p>The Time Lord soniced the lock, practically kicking the door in as he entered the room. The place was empty, save the lone Astronaut suit on the ground.</p><p>“What the…?” Jack looked around. “I heard her, she was in <em>here</em>!”</p><p>The Doctor didn’t reply, sonicing the spacesuit as River pulled the visor up.</p><p>“Empty.” River informed.</p><p>“Where’s Sarah?” The Doctor wondered, looking around.</p><p>“…Doctor.” Will pointed solemnly to the glowing orange pill-sized recorder on the floor. El covered her mouth, as the Doctor went over, gingerly picking it up.</p><p><em>“I don’t…” </em>Sarah Jane began on the recorder, staying calm despite the situation. <em>“I don’t know where I am.”</em></p><p>“They ripped that out of her…” El swallowed. “How did they do that? Dad?”</p><p>The Doctor remained silent, gently touching the device with a finger.</p><p>“And why can we still hear her?” Will asked, swallowing.</p><p>River frowned. “Is it a recording.”</p><p>“…no.” The Doctor quietly replied. “This is live. Oh, Sarah… My Sarah Jane…” He muttered, touching the recorder. “Be brave.” He wished. “We’re coming.” He shoved the recorder into his pocket, turning to River.</p><p>“Doctor!” Canton yelled from Renfrew’s office. “You’d better get here!”</p><p>The Time Lord shot into motion, sprinting down the steps towards the office.</p><p>Walking in, the Doctor’s eyes locked on the alien trying to crawl back, as Canton kept the gun trained on it.</p><p>The Doctor’s gaze became steely as he walked over. “Who and what are you?”</p><p>The creature rattled. <strong><em>“Silence, Doctor.”</em></strong></p><p>The Time Lord inhaled. “What?”</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“We are the Silence.”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>El gasped. “Dad… One of those things… it got into the TARDIS when the time loop machine thing was on Aickman Road.”</p><p>“Ah,” The Doctor tilted his head, looking down at the creature. “So you’re why the old girl exploded. Sabotage. I thought I’d just left the tap running.”</p><p>The alien let out a rattling, cruel laugh. <strong><em>“Silence will fall.”</em></strong></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0087"><h2>87. One Small Step...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The door to the Doctor’s prison in Area 51 unsealed, sliding open, the soldiers pointing their weapons at it, prepared for anything that might happen.</p><p>Canton stepped out, looking no worse for wear. “Hello again.”</p><p>“Sir, you’ve been in there for days!” The soldier shakily kept his gun pointed. “What the hell have you been doing in there!?”</p><p>“Doesn’t matter.” Canton shook his head. “I need Doctor Shepherd here right now.”</p><p>“Sir, I need to talk to Colonel Jefferson right now!” The soldier retorted.</p><p>“No.” Canton retorted, as someone stepped out behind him. “You don’t.”</p><p>The soldiers’ weapons all dropped in shock, as they were quick to salute.</p><p>“Uh…” Nixon returned it awkwardly. “Hi, fellas. It’s me… the President. I want to tell you all, on behalf of the American people, how much we all appreciate your hard work.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS team sat, congregated in that old warehouse, as the countdown ticked by.</p><p><em>“The target for the Apollo 11 astronauts, the moon,” </em>Mission Control narrated, as the television nearby showed a black and white feed of the launch site, <em>“At liftoff, will be at a distance of two-hundred-eighteen-thousand, ninety-six miles away. We’re just past the two-minute mark on the countdown. T-minus one minute fifty-four seconds in counting.”</em></p><p>“Wow…” Will breathed, looking at it, as he and El ate popcorn out of a bucket. “I can’t believe it… <em>actually </em>watching the moon landing, live!”</p><p>El frowned. “But it’s the launch.”</p><p>“Same difference.” Will shot back. “It’s still… wow. If you told me I’d be doing this, I’d have called you crazy.”</p><p>El glanced at him. “Remind me later, and I can get dad to show us the landing <em>on </em>the moon.”</p><p>Will smiled. “Awesome.” He reached into the bucket again, the two’s hands barely brushing against each other.</p><p>El glanced at him, and smiled, even though he was still squarely focused on the TV.</p><p>Across the way, on the same metal table in the centre of the room, Jack, River, and the Doctor were running scans on the suit.</p><p>“It’s an exoskeleton, basically.” River stated, pointing at all the tech stuffed inside. “The suit itself is human, but I’m picking up at least twenty different kinds of alien tech in here.”</p><p>“But who was the girl?” The Doctor wondered. “Why put her in here?”</p><p>“Doctor…” Jack glanced over to the two teenagers sitting in front of the TV, lowering his voice. “That report I saw mentioned genetic samples from Hawkins. They were trying to clone someone from there. Probably someone pretty powerful.”</p><p>The Doctor looked up, before shaking his head. “No, no, not possible.”</p><p>“Are you sure?” The Time Agent pressed.</p><p>“Yes!” The Doctor replied, lowering his voice. “How about we start with the fact that she looks and sounds nothing like El?”</p><p>“Disguising a face and voice is easy, remember,” Jack pointed, “We never saw her outside the suit, and never talked to her that wasn’t through a phone or while she was in the suit.”</p><p>“But it doesn’t make <em>sense!</em>” The Doctor railed. “El was born in nineteen-seventy-one, two years from now! Get the genes of the most powerful human being that’s ever lived, I get that, but why go back in time, why bother with the spacesuit, why bother… raising her!?”</p><p>River glanced up from the suit at the Doctor. “It’s not just raising her. That room we saw, the pictures, the toys, the books… It’s like they were trying to make her into something <em>better </em>than El.”</p><p>The Doctor frustratedly rubbed his forehead. “The only way to save Sarah Jane is to work out what the Silence are doing. The pieces are there, but I can’t quite…” The Doctor frustratedly gestured with his hands, making a strangling motion, before kicking a box. “Are we <em>sure </em>this is what we’re dealing with here!?”</p><p>Jack nodded. “Can’t think of why else they’d keep that report there.” He said. “They must’ve thought it was pretty important.”</p><p>“And,” River pulled at the suit, “She climbed <em>out </em>of this suit. Tore her way through it. The only explanation I can think of is she has similar abilities to El, or she isn’t human at all.”</p><p>“Oh,” The Doctor poked at the suit. “Incredibly strong but running away, I like her!”</p><p>“But, how do we <em>find </em>her?” Jack questioned.</p><p>“Don’t you know…” The Doctor glanced at him. “I have the strangest feeling she’s going to find us.”</p><p>“There’s one thing I still don’t get!” Will suddenly turned around from the TV. “Why a spacesuit?”</p><p>The Doctor looked over. “Huh?”</p><p>“A spacesuit.” Will repeated. “If they’ve got tech like that, why cram it into a spacesuit? What do they need it for?”</p><p>The Doctor frowned, eyebrows furrowing. “Why do they need the spacesuit? They need it for… for…” The Time Lord’s eyes locked on the television, and he breathed. “The space race!”</p><p>“What?” El questioned.</p><p>“Think about it!” The Doctor pointed. “Jack called them parasites, getting humanity to make the advancements so they don’t have to! If they could do that for thousands and thousands of years, on a <em>global </em>scale…”</p><p>“Then… what?” Jack asked, not liking where this was going.</p><p>“Then why’d humanity suddenly decide they wanted to go into space?” The Doctor slowly turned to the TV, indiscreetly looking at El. “And why did the government suddenly decide telekinetic powers were a viable weapon?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“My… <em>God.</em>” Doctor Shepherd breathed, looking over the wounded alien on the floor of the prison. “What is it?”</p><p>“It’s just an alien, Doctor Shepherd.” Canton calmly replied.</p><p>“Someone’s already been treating it!” The man recognized; a bandage wrapped around the Silent’s torso.</p><p>“Yes.” Canton confirmed. “You have.”</p><p>“Does Colonel Jefferson know this thing is here!?” Shepherd asked.</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Then I’m telling him!” Shepherd shot to his feet.</p><p>“Again?”</p><p>Shepherd broke eye contact with the alien, looking to Canton. “Sorry, what?”</p><p>Canton smiled. “Exactly.”</p><p>Shepherd shook his head, walking out in a fuss. “Sergeant, why was I called down here for no reason!?”</p><p>Canton sealed the door, looking to the alien, as he took out the phone the Doctor had provided him with.</p><p><strong><em>“You tend to my wounds…”</em></strong> The Silent hissed. <strong><em>“You are foolish.”</em></strong></p><p>“Why?” Canton asked, turning on the phone’s camera. “What would you do in my place?”</p><p><strong><em>“We have ruled your lives since your lives began.” </em></strong>The Silent rasped. <strong><em>“You should kill us all on sight, but you will never remember we were even here. Your will is ours”</em></strong></p><p>“Yeah, well,” Canton gruffly replied, “Sorry to disappoint you, but thanks. That’s exactly what I needed to hear. This is a video phone… whatever that is.” He closed the phone, following the Doctor’s instructions.</p><p>----------</p><p>The communicator beeped, and the Doctor looked at the screen, tapping it with a smile.</p><p><strong>“You should kill us all on sight.” </strong>The Silent in the recording snarled.</p><p>“Doctor,” River grabbed the Time Lord’s attention. “The suit… would a unit like this be able to move without an occupant?”</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor replied, “Why?”</p><p>“Well, she said earlier the spaceman was going to eat her.” River replied. “Maybe that’s exactly what happened.”</p><p>“Hm…” The Doctor nodded, looking down at the glowing nano-recorder, and then to his watch.</p><p>Not long now.</p><p>-----------</p><p>All across the world, the day approached. People across the planet, newscasters, families, everyone watched in anticipation.</p><p>In bars, in houses, in offices, and in stores, the people of the planet Earth watched with anticipation as the first step, not just onto the moon, but into space exploration, as a whole, was about to be made.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Light shone through her eyelids as Sarah Jane returned to consciousness. Forcing her eyes open, the woman looked around.</p><p>She was in the time engine, the knock-off TARDIS, Silents crewing the place.</p><p>“Where am I?” The woman questioned, tugging at her bindings.</p><p>One of the aliens rattled, turning around to face her. <strong><em>“You are Sarah Jane Smith.”</em></strong></p><p>The woman wouldn’t let herself be intimidated. “Yes, and?”</p><p><strong><em>“We give you mercy.” </em></strong>The Silent replied. <strong><em>“You are not required for our plans.”</em></strong></p><p>Sarah Jane sighed. “Then why’d you bring me here? You realize the Doctor’s about to tear down the entire planet to rescue me, correct?”</p><p><strong><em>“The Doctor does not scare us.” </em></strong>The Silent retorted.</p><p>Light flashed in the room, metallic scraping echoing throughout, as if testing that very statement, the TARDIS materialized in an empty spot across the room.</p><p>“Oh!” The Doctor popped out first. “Interesting. Very Aickman Road.”</p><p>“Told you one of them snuck aboard the TARDIS.” El said, keeping her hand in position as she followed him out.</p><p>“Ah, yes, but the one above Craig’s flat was abandoned,” The Doctor replied, as the others stepped out of the TARDIS.</p><p>As El kept herself ready to use her powers, River held her blaster in her hand, Jack holding his revolver in a similar manner, and Will?</p><p>Don’t worry, we’ll get to him.</p><p>“Wonder how that happened?” The Time Lord suddenly shrugged. “Oh, well, suppose I’m about to find out. You lot,” He directed to his companions, “Keep one Silent in eyeshot at all times.” He turned back around to look at the aliens. “Oh, look! Sorry, you were in the middle of something weren’t you? I just have to say, though, have you seen what’s happening on the telly? Exciting!” He walked over to the nearest surface he could find, carrying a small black and white set. “Oh, hello, Sarah! You sitting comfortably? AH!” He shouted to the Silents beginning to move. “Stay where you are.” He ordered without humor. “Look at me, I’m confident. And you want to watch me while I’m confident. Oh, or maybe the bigger threat is my companions? One’s a girl who can crush you all with her mind, the other one is a man you are <em>not </em>going to be able to kill no matter what you do, one’s a woman who very much likes guns even though I don’t and while that should probably bother me it really doesn’t, and the last is someone who survived a <em>week </em>in an environment that killed others in minutes.”</p><p>“All I’ve got is a crowbar!” Will replied, quaking in terror.</p><p>“Yeah, his choice in weapons isn’t the best, but he’s got the spirit!” The Doctor replied. “Me? Nah, I never really liked using weapons. Horrid things. Makes it easy to forget it’s another sapient being you’re dealing with. I prefer words! The power to influence minds! You’d know something about that, wouldn’t you?” The Doctor twirled. “So, I’ll make you an offer. All I really want is your complete total and unconditional surrender! Leave this planet, and we’ll let bygones be bygones, won’t we?” He asked, getting in the face of one of the aliens.</p><p>The Silent stared back at the Doctor in what could only be a hostile refusal.</p><p>“Ooh… the Silence, you guys take that seriously don’t you? Okay, you got me!” The Doctor spun back around, “I’m not going to let you go that easily! Nice thought, but, it’s not Christmas.” He fiddled with the television for a moment, before spinning back around. “First, you tell me about the girl. Who is she, why is she important, eh? What’s she for?”</p><p>The Silent rattled.</p><p><em>“Yeah, we’re getting a picture of it here.” </em>Mission Control announced as, on the TV, live pictures from the surface of the moon went by.</p><p>“Sorry… but you’re all out of time.” The Doctor clapped his hands. “Now, a bit of history for you! Aren’t you proud?” He adjusted the antenna. “Cause you helped!” He tapped the top of the TV, turning around. “Now, do you know how many people are watching this live on the telly? Half a <em>billion.</em>” The Time Lord giddily laughed. “And that’s nothing because the human race will spread out far across the stars, and you just watch them fly; billions and billions of them, for billions and billions of years! And every single one of them, at some point in their lives, will look back on this man, taking that very first step, and they will never, <em>ever</em> forget it.”</p><p><em>“Okay, engine stopped.” </em>Buzz Aldrin reported, as everybody’s attention turned to the screen. <em>“ACA out of detent. Mode Control, both Auto. Descent Engine Command Override, Off.” </em></p><p>“Oh,” The Doctor pulled out his phone, “But they’ll forget this bit.” He held the device to his ears. “Ready?”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Ready.” Canton replied, linking the phone to the device the Doctor had given him, the green light blinking.</p><p>------------</p><p>Two-hundred thousand miles away, in the command module of Apollo 11, an identical light began to flash.</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>“It’s one small step for man…”</em>
</p><p>The picture flickered, the image of Neil Armstrong becoming distorted and flickering as it was replaced with something else.</p><p>
  <strong>“You should kill us all on sight.”</strong>
</p><p>The Silent standing across from the Doctor rattled in surprise as the command filled the air.</p><p>-----------</p><p><strong>“You should kill us all on sight.” </strong>The Silent ordered.</p><p>Nixon, the air force colonel sitting next to him, and the secret service agents all blinked in surprise.</p><p>------------</p><p>The men in the bar watched, confused, as the transmission became cut through with something else.</p><p>
  <strong>“You should kill us all on sight.”</strong>
</p><p>-----------</p><p>In the state of Indiana, in a moderately-sized house just in the woods, Terry Ives sat next to her sister Becky, eyes locked on the television.</p><p>
  <strong>“You should kill us all on <em>sight!”</em></strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>-----------</strong>
</p><p>“You just gave the order for your own execution,” The Doctor smiled dangerously. “And the whole <em>planet </em>just heard you.”</p><p>
  <strong>“You should kill us all on <em>sight!”</em></strong>
</p><p><em>“…one, giant leap for mankind.”</em> Armstrong finished.</p><p>“AND ONE WHACKING GREAT KICK UP THE BACKSIDE FOR THE SILENCE!” The Doctor shouted triumphantly. “You just raised an <em>army </em>against yourselves! And now, for a thousand generations, you’re going to be ordering them to destroy you every day. How fast can you run?” The Time Lord seethed, getting in the alien’s face. “Cause today’s the day the human race throw you off their planet, and they won’t even know they’re doing it!” He chuckled. “I think quite possibly the word you’re looking for right now is… whoops, run!”</p><p>The Silents in the room rattled, as electricity crackled.</p><p>“GUYS, I MEAN US!” The Doctor shouted. “RUN!”</p><p>Lighting arced through the air as two Silents suddenly went flying, muzzle flashes from Jack’s revolver lighting up the place as Will yelped and ducked, white bolts of energy from River’s blaster scorching the air, while the Doctor rushed over to free Sarah Jane.</p><p>“Run!” River shouted. “Into the TARDIS, quickly!”</p><p>Pushing Sarah Jane ahead, the Time Lord wildly waved around the sonic screwdriver, green blasts of concentrated sonic energy shooting from the emitter.</p><p>Will pushed the TARDIS doors open, allowing Sarah Jane to enter, as the others dealt with the aliens trying to kill them.</p><p>“Don’t let them build to full power!” The Doctor recommended.</p><p>“I know!” River retorted. “There’s a reason why I’m shooting, honey! What are you doing!?”</p><p>“Helping!”</p><p>“You’ve got a screwdriver!” Jack cut in. “Go build a cabinet!”</p><p>“That’s really rude!” The Doctor spluttered.</p><p>“Shut up and drive!” River ordered.</p><p>The Doctor huffed, running over to the TARDIS, pulling El in with him, as Jack and River spun, back to back, dealing with the remaining aliens.</p><p>River’s blaster whirred as the ringing in Jack’s ears finally died down, both holstering their weapons. Jack took a breath and turned around. “What kind of doctor are you?”</p><p>“Archaeology.” A Silent got up off the ground behind River, and Jack’s hand went back for his revolver, but River was quicker on the draw, blasting the alien away without even having to look. “Love a tomb.” She winked, stepping into the TARDIS.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Ack!” The Doctor spluttered, as El pushed him out of the way. “You could let me fly it!”</p><p>“Or,” The girl replied, following the instructions the TARDIS was mentally feeding to her, “We can get where we want to go.”</p><p>“Ha!” Sarah Jane laughed, as the Doctor went red in the face.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0088"><h2>88. The Impossible Girl</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Heh,” Nixon chuckled, shaking the Doctor’s hand gratefully. “So, we’re safe again.”</p><p>“Safe!?” The Time Lord incredulously repeated. “No, of course you’re not safe. There’s about a billion other things out there that want a piece of this planet, including a few your own government lets out. But if you want to pretend you’re safe to be able to sleep at night then yes. You’re safe.”</p><p>El sighed, shaking her head.</p><p>The Doctor turned around. “Canton. Till the next one, eh?”</p><p>“Looking forward to it.” The man gruffly replied.</p><p>The Doctor turned back to Nixon. “Canton just wants to get married. Hell of a reason to kick a good working man like him outta the FBI.”</p><p>Nixon smiled, “I’m sure something can be arranged.”</p><p>The Time Lord tapped the President. “I’m counting on you.” He said, turning to the TARDIS.</p><p>“Er, Doctor…” Nixon held him up. “Canton here tells me you’re…” He spluttered, trying not to sound insane. “You’re from the future? It hardly seems possible, but I was wondering-“</p><p>“Should warn you,” The Doctor cut him off, “Don’t tend to answer a lot of questions.”</p><p> “But I’m a president at the beginning of his time.” Nixon huffed. “Dare I ask… will I be remembered?”</p><p>“Oh, Dicky.” The Doctor replied, causing Will to force himself to stifle his laughter. “Tricky Dicky. They’re never going to forget you.” He turned, ushering his group into the TARDIS. “Say hi to David Frost for me.”</p><p>Nixon blinked, as the TARDIS vanished. “David Frost?” He shook his head, glancing at Canton. “This person you want to marry… black?”</p><p>“Yes…”</p><p>“I know what people think of me, but perhaps I’m a little more liberal-“</p><p>“<em>…he </em>is.”</p><p>“…I think the moon is far enough for now, don’t you, Mister Delaware?”</p><p>“I figured it might be.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“You could come with us?” The Doctor hopefully suggested, leaning on the bars of River’s cell.</p><p>“I escape often enough, thank you.” The woman replied with a smile. “And I have a promise to live up to.” She played with his bow tie, running a finger down his chest. “You’ll understand soon enough.”</p><p>“Okay. Up to you.” The Doctor turned, beginning to walk back to the TARDIS. “See you next time. Call me.”</p><p>“What?” River asked with a smile in her voice. “That’s it? What’s the matter with you?”</p><p>The Time Lord threw his arms out. “Have I forgotten something?”</p><p>“Oh…” The woman shook her head. “Shut up.” She grabbed his shirt and pulled him in, locking her with his.</p><p>The Doctor gestured awkwardly, not quite knowing what to do as River finally pulled away. “Right, okay… interesting.”</p><p>River’s face dropped. “What’s wrong? You’re acting like we’ve never done that before?”</p><p>The Doctor’s green eyes darted around, trying to find an exit. “We haven’t. Oh! Look at the time, must be off! But it was very nice, very… good…” He scrambled back to the TARDIS. “You know what they say! First time for everything!” He dashed in, before the TARDIS took off, leaving River in the cold of her cell.</p><p>“…And a last time.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor played with the console. “13 Bannerman Road, planet Earth… twenty-third of April, 2011!” The console room shook as the TARDIS settled again.</p><p>Sarah Jane pulled the Doctor into a hug. “Do you have to go again?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled regretfully. “I have to. Otherwise I’d keep you here forever and I couldn’t do that to Luke, Rani, and Clyde.” He pulled back. “Besides. Something… wonderful happens in October. I couldn’t rob you of that either.”</p><p>The woman smiled, knowing that the Doctor was thinking about something in her future. She turned to El. “And it was lovely seeing you again, El.”</p><p>The girl beamed. “You too, Aunt Sarah.”</p><p>“And Will…” Sarah Jane turned to him. “It was a pleasure meeting you too.”</p><p>The boy hurriedly nodded. “Yeah. Oh, um… if I, hypothetically, wanted to get a John Smith novel signed by the author back in my home time, how would I do that?”</p><p>Sarah Jane laughed. “Put it on your Christmas list. I’m sure the Doctor can think of something.” She looked to each one of them, smiling. “Goodbye, you three. Until the next time.” She turned to walk down the steps, crossing the console room, before stepping out.</p><p>“…goodbye, Sarah Jane.” The Doctor whispered.</p><p>“And what about me?” Jack stepped in front of the Doctor. “Don’t I get a hug?”</p><p>“…Oh, alright.” The Doctor rolled his eyes, pulling Jack in too.</p><p>Jack smiled, pulling away, as he turned to face the other two. “Glad I got to meet you when the universe <em>wasn’t </em>falling apart.” He directed to El. “And Will, you’re a good kid. Keep this guy out of trouble, got that?”</p><p>Will nodded. “Got it.”</p><p>Jack turned to exit as well, but the Doctor quickly caught up. “Um, Jack…”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Listen, there’s… something I need you to do for me?”</p><p>Jack’s interest looked piqued. “How so?”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at the console, making sure El and Will’s attention was focused elsewhere, before turning back. “The Silence… they’re big. Bigger than the ones on Earth, I know. They got El’s DNA from Hawkins and are using it for <em>something</em>.” He poked the man in the chest. “But I still can’t work out how all the pieces fall together.”</p><p>“Alright.” Jack nodded. “What do you want me to do?”</p><p>“Investigate.” The Doctor answered. “Search. Figure out everything you can about the Silence. Who they are, what they’re doing… why they need to make a clone of my daughter to do it.”</p><p>“I’ll do my best.” Jack answered. “But I don’t exactly have travel options.”</p><p>“Well then,” The Doctor took Jack’s left arm, sonicing the burnt-out vortex manipulator on his wrist. The device beeped, the electronics inside returning to life. “There.”</p><p>Jack’s eyebrows raised as he looked down at it. “You fixed it?”</p><p>“Probably made it work even better than it used to before.” The Doctor shrugged. “Now, get going.” The Time Lord tapped the man on his back. “You’ve got work to do.”</p><p>Jack nodded, but lingered for a moment, snapping the Doctor a salute, before stepping out, closing the door behind him.</p><p>“Right!” The Doctor clapped his hand, turning around, walking up the console. “Will, go and get the thermocouplings for us, will you?” He asked, setting the TARDIS back into motion.</p><p>“Why am I always the gopher?” The boy mumbled, walking down the steps to the lower corridor.</p><p>Once Will was gone, El turned to the Doctor. “So…”</p><p>“So?” The Doctor returned.</p><p>“The Silence…” El swallowed. “They’re the ones who blew up the TARDIS.”</p><p>“…very probably.” The Doctor replied. “If not that, then they’re linked to it somehow.”</p><p>“And… your death?” El asked, the Doctor looking at her. “We only got pulled into it because we got invited to the day you were supposed to die.”</p><p>“Ah, who knows.” The Doctor shrugged. “No use dwelling about death. We’d be too scared to live if we thought about death all the time, so!” He pulled around the monitor. “Let’s drop Will back so his mother doesn’t kill me and then we can start planning some more adventures! Adventures are great, I love adventures.”</p><p>El smiled, letting the Doctor take the lead as they piloted the TARDIS towards its next destination. The Doctor returned it, but there was still something bothering him, a lot.</p><p>Just who was that little girl?</p><p>-----------</p><p>
  <em>New York City, 1970</em>
</p><p>Sirens wailed in the distance, along with honking horns, as the lights of the city shined, making it look almost day even though they were dead in the middle of the night.</p><p>A wandering tramp was looking through an alleyway, turning over garbage can lids, looking for anything he could live off of.</p><p>Down the alley, behind a dumpster, there was coughing, as a little girl, holding herself to try and keep warm, walked out from behind, shivering in the cold winter air.</p><p>The tramp looked to her in concern. “You okay? Little girl, are you okay?”</p><p>The little girl coughed. “It’s okay… It’s alright.” She rasped, shivering. “I’m… dying.”  One of her hearts had already given out, wouldn’t be long now. “But I can fix it. It’s easy, see?”</p><p>The little girl held out her hands.</p><p>Underneath her skin, her veins began to glow a bioluminescent orange, golden particles, like shimmering dust, began to radiate from her skin.</p><p>The tramp shambled back in shock, before turning to run down the alleyway, as the little girl laughed to herself.</p><p>She threw her arms out and her head back, succumbing to the energy for the first time.</p><p>The Astronaut regenerated.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0089"><h2>89. Grief</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I!” Will shouted, striding into the TARDIS from where it was parked in the Doctor and El’s house in Hawkins. “Am going! To KILL somebody!”</p><p>The Doctor poked his head up from underneath the console, blinking. “Well, that’s not very nice, why would you wanna do that?”</p><p>“Troy…” Will seethed, shaking with anger. “Walsh.”</p><p>“Oh, Troy.” El recognized, nodding her head, before shaking it. “I don’t like Troy.”</p><p>“Nobody does!” Will agreed. “Not really!”</p><p>“Well then,” The Doctor glanced over, “What’s the problem?”</p><p>Will sighed, trying to calm down. Traveling on the TARDIS had exposed him to all sorts of alien menaces… which only made it more frustrating when he got back home after a trip and had to deal with the bullshit of regular life. But he had to remain calm.</p><p>“Troy’s family is moving away.” Will explained, leaning on the railing. “But that just means he’s making our lives as much of a living hell as possible before he finally goes and never gets the chance again.”</p><p>“Ah, bullies.” The Doctor nodded with an understanding sigh. “I know something about that.”</p><p>Will raised an eyebrow. “You? Bullied?”</p><p>“It’s true.” El concurred. “He told me once. They called him wormhole and snail.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “Anzor and Torvic. Bah.” He huffed, turning around. “One thing is universal in all cultures I’m afraid, and that’s targeting those who are different than you.”</p><p>“No, but… why <em>you?” </em>Will asked, looking at the Doctor.</p><p>“Well, I was a bit of an… oddity.” The Doctor answered. “Still am, I suppose. But you should’ve seen me back then. Dressing in Edwardian clothing from Earth instead of the standard Time Lord robes, constantly flubbing my words… I also had this habit of breaking out into laughter like Yoda at the most inopportune moments.”</p><p>“…How did you take care of it?” Will inquired.</p><p>“…People like that get their comeuppance eventually. Don’t worry about it.” The Doctor evasively replied, turning back to the console. “Now, I know I promised you both a trip, but there seems to be a problem with the helmic regulator.”</p><p>“Aww, come on, really?” El groaned.</p><p>“Unfortunately.” The Doctor replied. “Don’t wanna risk taking off and ending up getting Will back home at the wrong time.” He glanced at Will. “Your room should still be where it was. Unless you want to head back home.”</p><p>“Nah,” Will replied, moving up the stairs, “I already told mom I’d be gone until tomorrow morning.”</p><p>“Oh!” El excitedly hopped, charging after him. “Sleepover! I’ll get the popcorn and the candy! There’s a new movie I wanna watch!”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes, going back to the console. Leave it to them to have all the fun.</p><p>----------</p><p>Will frowned, looking at the screen. He glanced at the actress in the scene, then to El, then to the screen again, then back to El.</p><p>El blinked, looking at Will. “What?”</p><p>“You don’t…” Will jerked a thumb at the screen in confusion. “Never mind.” He dropped it, holding out his hand. “Can you pass the Reese’s Pieces?”</p><p>El nodded, looking down, handing out the box.</p><p>“Thanks.” Will offered.</p><p>“Huh, I don’t remember getting these.” She remarked, holding up a bag of Jelly Babies.</p><p>“Thanks!” A different voice offered, both Will and El jumping in surprise.</p><p>El gasped, running into the arms of her ‘sister.’ “Jane!”</p><p>The older version of herself laughed. “Well, hello to you too.” She held her younger self tight, before pulling away. “Did my present help you out? Don’t tell me, cause I already know the answer.” She turned to Will, the boy looking on in shock. “And Will… Good to see you too. I would say it’s nice to meet you, but we’ve already done that.” She winked.</p><p>Will stammered, blushing slightly as he kept looking between El and Jane. He’d <em>heard </em>from El about her older self’s occasional visits but being witness to one live was totally different. His brain was having trouble getting around it. Seeing the present El and the future one standing next to each other was so disorienting, he couldn’t put the sensation into words.</p><p>And it was <em>weird.</em> Part of him couldn’t believe it. There was no way the El he knew with her short hair and almost boyish build became someone <em>that </em>pretty.</p><p>…wait, what did he just say?</p><p>“I haven’t seen you since… before the Pandorica.” El looked up at herself inquisitively.</p><p>Jane smiled regrettably. “I know. I wanted to visit when dad was… forgotten about, but I couldn’t. I’m sorry.”</p><p>Will rubbed his face, looking between the two inquisitively. “Uh… Jane,” He felt uncomfortable calling her that, like it didn’t quite fit, but he needed some way to differentiate the two. “What are you doing here?”</p><p>“What?” The fifteen-year-old asked in response, flopping on the couch. “I can’t visit my younger self and her best friend?” She threw her arms around both, pulling them in. “What’re we watching? I’m hungry.”</p><p>El glanced at the older version and frowned. “You’re acting different. What is it?”</p><p>Jane rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’m bored, happy? Jack had Torchwood work, you-“ She poked Will, “Had schoolwork, and Starcourt was closed for… reasons. So I’d figure I’d steal Jack’s vortex manipulator since I know all his hiding places, find someone to bother, and here we are.” She shrugged.</p><p>Will frowned. “That’s a lot to go through just to cure boredom.”</p><p>Jane smiled mischievously. “What if I told you it was because I had an idea?”</p><p>El blinked. “What kind of idea?”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El, Jane, and Will stood crouched in a bush, watching as the last vestiges of sunset faded from the night sky.</p><p>“Alright…” Jane muttered, glancing at Will. “You got the camera?”</p><p>The boy shot a thumbs-up, the screen on the side showing the surroundings tinted in green.</p><p>“Okay.” Jane nodded mischievously, turning back to the house.</p><p>El looked at her future self inquiringly. “How do you know he’s here alone?”</p><p>“I know that, because <em>you </em>know it now.” Jane poked her younger self in the forehead. “God, I love time travel. Now…” She rubbed her hands. “Let’s do this.”</p><p>Across the yard, they could hear as an invisible hand knocked on the front door, a grim reaper Halloween decoration attached to nothing floating up to the door.</p><p>The door was pulled open, and Troy scowled. “You think that’s funny?” He went to shove the decoration back, the floating robed skeleton grabbing the boy’s arm.</p><p><strong><em>“Troy…” </em></strong>Jane cast her voice mentally to the boy, giggling as her past self kept the decoration up. She could feel the boy’s bubbling fear, as she repeated his name. <strong><em>“It’s time for your appointment, Troy Walsh.” </em></strong>The reaper’s hands lifted as it floated back up, reaching out.</p><p>Troy screamed in pure uncontrollable terror as he slammed the door.</p><p>
  <strong> <em>“Hm… well… well shit.”</em> </strong>
</p><p>The three devolved into unrestrained giggles as the decoration turned, floating into the dark of the night.</p><p>“Oh, that was great!” Jane laughed, looking to Will. “Did you get it?”</p><p>Will smiled as well. “All of it.”</p><p>El looked between them. “Was that really a good idea?”</p><p>“Well, it’s not like we’ll get the chance to do it once he’s gone.” Jane replied, standing up once she was sure Troy was gone. “Come on, let’s get back home before dad realizes you two are gone.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Here we go.” Jane said to herself in satisfaction as Will and El sat back down on the couch, putting the movie back on. “The thing about dad is; when he starts doing maintenance, he couldn’t even hear a bomb go off.”</p><p>“Aw…” El whined. “Do you have to go <em>now?”</em></p><p>“Sorry, kiddo,” Jane shrugged. “I don’t remember myself staying past this point when I was you, so I can’t. Mama wouldn’t be very happy with me if I did.”</p><p>El frowned. “Mama?” She repeated. “Does that mean…”</p><p>“…I wasn’t talking about Terry.” Jane shot down. “Now, you two get to watching that movie.” She ordered, stepping out of the room.</p><p>The doors slid shut, and Jane sighed, flopping against it.</p><p>“Didn’t you remember what I said?” A voice next to her asked rhetorically, and she jumped, whipping around to face the source.</p><p>The Doctor was standing there, with his arms crossed. “There’s not a word spoken in this TARDIS that I don’t hear.”</p><p>“Oh… hey, dad.”</p><p>“Don’t ‘hey dad’ me.” The Time Lord replied disapprovingly. His hands dropped to his sides, as he leaned in. “What in the <em>hell </em>are you doing?” He quietly demanded. “Crossing your own timestream like this is dangerous.”</p><p>Jane glanced to the door. “I wanted to have some fun. Sue me.”</p><p>“Fun?” The Doctor incredulously repeated. <em>“Fun?” </em>He hissed. “You broke the laws of time for a little <em>fun</em>!?”</p><p>“No!” Jane angrily poked the Doctor in the chest. “You don’t talk to me like that! I don’t care if you’re my dad, you have <em>no </em>idea…” She shook as… were those tears? Why was she crying? “No idea what I’ve been through.”</p><p>The Doctor’s anger died down, as he looked upon her. “Hey, hey…” He pulled her into a hug. “Hey… What’s wrong, El?”</p><p>“You…” She cried faintly. “You broke your promise.”</p><p>“Did I?” The Doctor quietly asked. “How’d I do that?”</p><p>“…April 22<sup>nd</sup>, 2011.” Jane recited blankly, almost rocking back and forth in the Doctor’s arms. “Lake Silencio… I couldn’t stop it.”</p><p>“El… Oh, El…” The Doctor whispered. “How long has it been for you since then?”</p><p>“…a year.” The girl answered. “I thought I’d be fine, but… I…” She sniffled, leaning into the Doctor. “Nobody but me and Will seem to care. Not even River or Uncle Jack…”</p><p>“Is that why you keep coming back here?” He inquired quietly. “It’s not to spend time with your younger self, is it? It’s an excuse to see me, if only for a moment.”</p><p>Jane--El--said nothing, merely nodding.</p><p>“El… I’m sorry.” He whispered into her ear quietly. “I really am so, so sorry.” He pulled back just slightly, gently tilting her head up to look at him. “But the past is the past for a reason. You can relive it, have some fun in it… but you can’t change it. And you can’t stay stuck in it forever. Do you really think I’d be happy, having you stay stuck on me to such a degree that you’d break the laws of time out of the vain hope for more time?”</p><p>“…it’s only been a year.”</p><p>“I know.” The Doctor kindly replied. “I know. You need to grieve. But you can’t grieve forever. Right now, all of those happy memories you have of me are going to be sad, but that’s okay, it’s only natural. Don’t force yourself to be happy when you’re not.”</p><p>“I want to be happy, though.” Jane sniffed.</p><p>“I know you do… and you know what?” He looked at her. “So do I.” He looked down the corridor to the console room. “The good thing about the TARDIS… I can put her on silent and turn the stabilizers on. Those two in there won’t even know there’s been a trip.”</p><p>Jane took a breath. “You mean…”</p><p>The Doctor took her hand. “A trip. Just the two of us, just like old times. What do you say?”</p><p>Jane smiled, wiping her face, as the Doctor took the lead back into the console room.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0090"><h2>90. The Dream World: Dinner With The Byers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“This was a bad idea, a terrible, horrible, no good, <em>awful </em>idea!” The Doctor anxiously rambled as he and El pulled up to the Byers household.</p><p>El looked to the Time Lord, all… dolled up and presentable on the order of the TARDIS (Really, some days it was like she was the Doctor’s wife, other days, his mother).</p><p>“Why do you say that?” El asked. “I thought Joyce was… nice.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m sure she is.” The Doctor granted, “But… this!?” He wildly gestured. “<em>Domestic!? </em>I don’t do this! I’m a dashing, handsome, puckish rogue roaming wherever the wind takes me, not… John Smith with a house and a car and a daughter!”</p><p>“You…” El looked slightly hurt by the Doctor’s implication. “Don’t wanna do this?”</p><p>The Time Lord looked at her, and his hearts immediately melted. “Aw, El… I didn’t mean that.” He ruffled her hair, quickly messing up the work the TARDIS had done to make her look like a ‘normal’ twelve-year-old. “It’s just… I don’t have that sort of life. Haven’t since… Gallifrey.”</p><p>“…I never had that.” El replied, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>“I know.” The Doctor pulled her into a comforting hug, before the memories of the lab could hit her and she could break out into tears. “Which is why I’m willing to take a crack at it now. You deserve it.”</p><p>“Thank you.” El sniffled.</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor pulled back, clapping his hands, and taking a breath. “You know what? New territory for both of us! If we’re going to be socially awkward disasters fumbling their way through this dinner, let’s do it together.”</p><p>The Doctor jumped out of Bessie first, grabbing the bottle in the back seat, and running up to the door before his self-preservation instincts could kick in and tell him to get out before he made himself look like a complete and utter cock.</p><p>The Time Lord swallowed his discomfort and knocked, patiently standing with El. He took her hand, mentally psyching himself up, as the door opened.</p><p>Joyce looked between them with a smile. “You came!”</p><p>“Well, I’ll be honest, we-“</p><p>El elbowed the Time Lord in his side.</p><p>“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” The Doctor quickly amended.</p><p>“Well, come on in!” Joyce invited, stepping aside to let them enter.</p><p>El sniffed, as a lovely aroma filled the air, tickling her nostrils. “Mmm… what’s that?”</p><p>“Homemade pizza.” Joyce answered, leading the Doctor to the dining room. “It’ll still be a little while but you can put that there. What is it, wine?”</p><p>“Oh, it’s, um, uh…” The Doctor stuttered, looking at the bottle, pulling it out of the bag, an image of a grapevine on it. “Grape juice.”</p><p>Joyce chuckled. “Well, technically yes, I suppose.”</p><p>“No, I mean it’s actually…” The Doctor popped the cork off, sniffing the bottle. “Actual grape juice.”</p><p>Joyce blinked, looking at the Doctor.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” He quickly apologized, “Was I not supposed to do that?”</p><p>“Oh, no, it’s fine.” Joyce returned.</p><p>“Ah, great,” The Doctor looked at the bottle. “I don’t drink alcohol, and I’m sure you wouldn’t want your son drinking it.” The Time Lord looked around. “Speaking of whom… Where is young Will?”</p><p>Joyce turned her head, looking down the hallway. “Will!” She called. “Come here, please!”</p><p>One of the doors opened, the boy stepping out, walking their direction, he stopped, before his jaw dropped. “It’s you…” He slowly walked up to the Doctor, looking around the Time Lord. “You saved me!”</p><p>The Doctor humbly waved his arm. “Don’t worry bout it. Oh,” He suddenly realized, turning to the girl by his side, “This is my daughter, El.”</p><p>“Hi.” The girl shyly waved.</p><p>“Hey.” Will returned it, before looking back at the Doctor. “Mom didn’t tell me you were coming by.”</p><p>“I wanted it to be a surprise.” Joyce replied. “Now, we’ve got some time until it’s done, why don’t you show El around your room?”</p><p>Will looked reluctant but conceded. “Okay.” He turned to El. “This way.”</p><p>------------</p><p>El’s head tilted curiously as she looked around Will’s room, taking in each and every object. She’d gotten a peek when she and the Doctor were trying to track him down, but not really anything beyond that before it was back to trying to stop the monster.</p><p>“So…” Will began, trying to make small talk. “That… Doctor is your dad?”</p><p>The girl nodded, saying nothing as she picked up a Rubik’s Cube frowning curiously as she examined it.</p><p>“What is… this?” El held it up.</p><p>Will blinked. “It’s a Rubik’s Cube.”</p><p>El’s head only tilted again.</p><p>“You… don’t know what a Rubik’s Cube is?”</p><p>El shook her head.</p><p>“It’s a puzzle.” He answered, taking it from her. “You’re supposed to scramble it,” Will explained, wildly twisting every row of squares, until it was just a mishmash of colors. “And then try to get it back to how it was before.” He started going through the motions again, until all the colors were back into place. “I got pretty good at this during my stay in the hospital.”</p><p>El frowned. “Why?”</p><p>“Why what?”</p><p>“Why do you do that?” El asked, poking the cube. “It sounds… pointless.”</p><p>“Well… it kinda is.” Will shrugged. “But that’s the point, I guess. It’s not really fun or exciting, just… a time waster.”</p><p>“Time waster.” El took it, frowning.</p><p>Will frowned. “Are you okay?”</p><p>El cocked her head. “Yes. Why?”</p><p>“It’s just… I’ve never met <em>anyone </em>who didn’t understand the concept of wasting time.” Will blinked.</p><p>“The… dad says it is because I’m… special.” El replied. The Doctor had said, on many many occasions, that El <em>was </em>a very special human being. That accounted for the gaps in things she didn’t know, right?</p><p>Will’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh. I get it.” He looked around, trying to find something. “Oh, you wanna see my drawings?”</p><p>“Drawings…” El repeated. She had a faint memory, faded now either through the TARDIS’s interference or El herself just pushing it out of mind, but it was there. Sitting at a table with only a small selection of crayons and just a single piece of paper.</p><p>The scientists were saying something about ‘psychology.’ They were trying to see if El thought any differently to normal humans by having her draw and watched as she did so. El hadn’t cared at the time, even under observation, the activity was strangely therapeutic to her. Her entire life she’d been asked only to destroy things, but that was the only occasion she could remember where she was told to create.</p><p>El nodded, and Will went over to his dresser, pulling out a book from the top drawer. He waved her over to sit down next to him, and flipped the book open, stopping at each page.</p><p>“Wow…” El breathed, looking at the detailed stylizations within. She’d only seen drawings like that in books inside the TARDIS library, not as something someone she’d met personally did themselves. She gently touched her finger to the page, a scene of what looked like an epic battle taking place between a traveling troupe of adventurers and a monstrous creature, feeling the rubbed-off colored wax of crayons on her fingertips.</p><p>“Yeah, this one was the hardest one I ever did.” Will looked at it. “Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and me all stayed up Saturday night redoing our run to kill that one boss.”</p><p>El glanced at Will. “Mike, Lucas, and Dustin?”</p><p>“They’re my friends. Here.” Will reached over to his bedside table, grabbing a picture frame to show off to El.</p><p>The girl quietly gasped, just low enough for Will not to notice, as she recognized them from the night the TARDIS had crashed. Mike was the leader, Dustin was the loud one, and Lucas was the one who was trying to be the voice of reason. They must’ve been out looking for Will in the forest when the TARDIS came down, and were sent scattering when the blue box impacted the ground so closely they’d almost been crushed.</p><p>“Yeah, I’ve known them all for a pretty long time now.” Will said, gauging El’s reaction. “We go over to Mike’s and play D&amp;D most days.”</p><p>“D and D?” El repeated.</p><p>“Dungeons and Dragons, that’s what most of these are based off of.” Will explained. “It’s a role-playing game.”</p><p>El blinked. “A… what?”</p><p>“You can be anything, do whatever you want. It’s pretty fun, if you’ve got the imagination for it.” Will replied.</p><p>El nodded. “…cool.” She said after a moment, remembering the explanation of the word given by the Doctor. “Will?” She looked at him. “Can you show me how to draw?”</p><p>Will’s brow furrowed. “You don’t know how?”</p><p>“I only did it… once.” El replied.</p><p>“Oh, well, sure.” Will grabbed a box of crayons, flipping through the pages until he found a blank. “Here. Drawing’s easy…”</p><p>------------</p><p>“So,” Joyce looked to the Doctor. “What made you decide to move out to Hawkins?”</p><p>“Ah, well…” The Time Lord awkwardly thought to himself for a moment. Any mention of the TARDIS and aliens were right out. He had to try to play at being a normal human if this was going to last. “Something…” He thought. “Happened to El.” He tried to leave it deliberately vague enough so that it could be anything when he thought up a proper excuse but kept his tone solemn enough so that Joyce wouldn’t press for too many details.</p><p>It was the truth though, something <em>did </em>happen to El, given the Weeping Angel and all, it was just a… selective playing about with tone is all.</p><p>“Oh…” Joyce’s heart looked like it melted. “I’m so, so sorry to hear that.”</p><p>The Doctor waved his hand. “Nah, don’t worry about it. It’s all in the past now.” Beeping came from the kitchen, and both their heads turned.</p><p>Joyce quickly got up, going to the oven to remove the pizza.</p><p>The Doctor looked at the food, and his stomach growled, the Time Lord looking down in surprise.</p><p><em>“Mmm…” </em>The Doctor’s stomach whispered to him. <em>“Pizza…”</em></p><p>-------------</p><p>The actual meal of dinner went by fairly quickly, as they sat and ate.</p><p>The Doctor glanced around, suddenly realized something. “You had another son, didn’t you? Where’s he got to?”</p><p>Joyce sighed. “Working. I keep telling him not to worry about it and focus on school, but he doesn’t listen.”</p><p>“Oh, I think that’s pretty good.” The Doctor pointed. “Not many people period willing to take on extra responsibilities like that. He sounds like he’s one in a million.”</p><p>Joyce smiled slightly, huffing. “Yeah.”</p><p>El blinked, looking between them. “School?”</p><p>“Yeah, there’s two in town.” Will explained. “You don’t have to drive all the way to another town to go. Dustin used to have to do that a long time ago before he moved out here.”</p><p>“No, but…” She looked to the Doctor. “School?”</p><p>“It’s where you go to learn things.” The Doctor answered, the other two surprised that El didn’t know what school was. “I took care of most of your education while we were traveling, but now…” He frowned, rubbing his chin. “I might have to…” He shuddered. “Enroll you. Blegh.”</p><p>El’s eyes widened. “Roll me!? Why would you do that?”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled slightly, shaking his head. “No, no. It means sign you up for it.” He glanced at the two. “She still has trouble with some words.”</p><p>“I’m learning though.” El defended herself.</p><p>The Time Lord smiled, proudly ruffling her hair. “Yes you are! So, what do you think?” He asked. “School.”</p><p>El frowned. A big building filled with other people, a lot of them she wouldn’t know…</p><p>“Oh, you could come to our school.” Will told her. “I could introduce you to my friends.”</p><p>“Then again,” The Doctor switched tracks, “Maybe this isn’t a conversation we should be having <em>here</em>.”</p><p>El nodded and went back to her food.</p><p>Still… the whole point of her asking the Doctor to bring her back was so she could be normal. Maybe that was a good place to start, school.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dinner was lovely, Joyce.” The Doctor complimented with a smile, bowing slightly.</p><p>The woman looked surprised. “Really.”</p><p>“Best meal I’ve had in a long time.” The Time Lord responded. “Thank you.” He looked to El, silently prompting her.</p><p>“Thank you.” The girl echoed.</p><p>“You’re both very welcome.” Joyce replied. “It was the least I could do.”</p><p>“Oh, don’t start with that again.” The Doctor huffed slightly, shaking his head. “I told you, I didn’t mind.”</p><p>“Still won’t stop me from being grateful.” Joyce retorted. “To both of you… Come back around again,” She offered, “Will could always use more friends.”</p><p>“Mom…” The boy moaned, though he didn’t argue.</p><p>“I’ll keep that in mind.” The Doctor smiled. “Goodbye, Joyce, Will.”</p><p>“Goodbye.” El waved, allowing the Doctor to lead her back to Bessie.</p><p>“You never did say your name.” Joyce called.</p><p>“Uh…” The Doctor blanked. “It’s… John. John Smith.” He cranked the car up, and pulled away, speeding back down the road to the TARDIS.</p><p>------------</p><p>“So,” Joyce looked to her son, “What do you think?”</p><p>“They’re nice.” Will answered, turning around. “El might be a bit… slow though.”</p><p>“And is that such a bad thing?”</p><p>“No, no.” Will responded. “It just surprised me that’s all. When you were telling me about that time they came by before I got back you said she was curious, but she didn’t even know what half the stuff in my room was.”</p><p>Joyce looked out the window, towards the lights fading in the distance. “That girl’s been through a lot…” She could sense it. She shook herself out of it and turned to Will. “Go get ready for bed. It’s almost ten and you’ve got school tomorrow.</p><p>Will sighed. “Okay, mom.” He turned, walking into his room, about to get ready. A piece of paper on the floor caught his attention, and he picked it up.</p><p>El had left her drawing.</p><p>The boy frowned curiously as he examined it. If it was supposed to be El’s second ever drawing… why would she choose to sketch what she did? One would think she might try drawing the Doctor, or a still scene of the outside…</p><p>But instead, she’d drawn a strange, hexagonal table-thing with levers, dials, switches, and valves on each panel, in an orangey room with hexagonal light fixtures on the walls. It wasn’t particularly detailed, just lines and colors, and it was sloppy, nothing like what Will would’ve drawn, but even if it had been done with all the detail in the world, he didn’t think he’d be able to work out what it was supposed to be.</p><p>And another confusing thing… when he’d asked her what she was drawing, El had said ‘Home.’</p><p>That was a <em>funny </em>looking home.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0091"><h2>91. You've Got Mail!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Exams are coming up. I've got essays to do that i haven't even STARTED, i've already missed an assignment, and I need to study. Updates on this are probably going to slow down, and focus will likely shift to the Dream World chapters rather than the TARDIS since those are usually much quicker for me to turn out.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>The Upside Down. Year unknown.</em>
</p><p>The Upside Down, contrary to what little the Party learned about it during their encounters with the hostile dimension, was not merely a reflection of Hawkins. It was Earth, one that had, at one point, belonged to a universe of its own.</p><p>Until, that is, the world ended. Nobody knew exactly what had happened. Even the humans that had survived the cataclysm were unsure. All they knew is that, somehow, some way, they had survived.</p><p>Until It had come. The survivors called it many names. The Great Intelligence, the Shadow Monster, the Oncoming Storm, the Valeyard… The Mind Flayer (which has very unfortunate implications given the state of Hawkins).</p><p>Regardless of what it was christened, what little survivors of Earth there had been were stamped out by the Mind Flayer’s arrival, leaving the planet empty, dead as it and its virus consumed the world. The Demogorgons, some other alien species that the Flayer had enslaved after consuming their homeworld, were sent out to hunt down any survivors.</p><p>But, despite the Flayer’s methodical consumption of the planet, it ran into a problem. The universe was dead. By its hand.</p><p>An entire cosmos consumed… now it was running out of food.</p><p>Until something happened, and a child from a living Earth unwittingly let it peek out into her universe. A world where stars still burned in the sky. Then, it escaped, running to find some other planet to consume after a Time Lord sent it scrambling away in fear.</p><p>But, paradoxically, it didn’t escape. It took it almost a year to force the portal wide enough to come through, and when it was ready, it was repelled by the same being that let it out.</p><p>See, the Big Bang Two had placed <em>everyone </em>back where they would be if the Doctor had never intervened in their existences, and when El remembered the Time Lord, everybody snapped back.</p><p>Except, that is, the Mind Flayer. It had been trapped back in the Upside Down, only now, it had knowledge of the Doctor, and just what capabilities he possessed.</p><p>And it wanted those capabilities for itself.</p><p>So it began to plan. To reach out. It was an intelligent being, and when the Time Lords started stealing its thralls, without understanding truly what they were, it took that opportunity. It knew now what Time Lords were in greater detail, and how to lure more in to where it could use them.</p><p>Those of you who are studious on the Doctor’s universe may already be crying foul. The Time Lords had sealed off the universe to prevent the Time War from spilling out.</p><p>No.</p><p>Because the Time Lords were already prepared to destroy one universe in order to save themselves, why would they care about others?</p><p>No, the Time Lords weren’t trying to keep something in. They were trying to keep something <em>out.</em></p><p>And El had broken into its prison. And the moment it was long planning for was coming to fruition.</p><p>In one of the massive, gargantuan scrapyards in the dead reflection of London, a much older woman, probably a Time Lady of high esteem at some point but now just an unwilling inhabitant of the place, led a much younger woman in Victorian-style dress into a carved-out cave.</p><p>The structures outside were for the Flayer. Not them.</p><p>The two reached their destination, and the younger one looked to an old man standing there patiently. “Will it be me, Uncle?” She asked slightly fearfully.</p><p>“Yeah,” The old man in the old army uniform nodded. “It’s gonna be you. I only wish I could go in your place, Idris…” He suddenly huffed. “Nah, I don’t, cause it’s <em>really </em>gonna hurt.”</p><p>The air pulsed, as their master made its impatience clear. An Ood with glowing red-orange eyes poked her.</p><p>Idris took a discomforted breath. “It’s started.” She allowed the Ood to lead her onto a small grate, a few of the same little bug-like creatures that composed the Mind Flayer’s being radiating out. Their master had returned from Hawkins in preparation, but it was hiding.</p><p>It did <em>not </em>underestimate Time Lords like it did the children. Everything had to go according to plan, no matter if it meant hiding like a coward.</p><p>“What will happen?” Idris asked fearfully.</p><p>“Oh,” The old woman cleared her throat, “Nephew will drain your mind, your soul from your body and leave your body empty.” She explained, like she’d given the explanation numerous times before.</p><p>The Ood placed its hands on both sides of Idris’s face.</p><p>“I’m scared!” Idris exclaimed.</p><p>“I expect so, dear.” The old woman turned away. “But soon you’ll have a new soul.”</p><p>The Flayer reached out through Nephew, and Idris’s breathing sped up as she could feel her mind vanishing. Not going unconscious, not being pushed out.</p><p><em>Vanishing. </em>She was being erased.</p><p>“There’ll be a Time Lord coming!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“…and then,” The Doctor chuckled slightly as the engines of the TARDIS whirred, the blue box flying aimlessly through space. “We discovered it wasn’t the robot king after all. Fortunately, I was able to reattach the head.”</p><p>Will blinked, as he turned to El, who was walking down the steps into the console room. Call him crazy, but something felt… off. Like the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up even though there was no danger at all. He disregarded it, however.</p><p>Nothing bad could happen in the TARDIS.</p><p>“That didn’t actually happen?” Will asked, as El sighed.</p><p>“Yeah…” The girl confirmed. “I was there.”</p><p>Something on the console flashed, a high-pitched alarm breaking them out of their conversation.</p><p>“Oh, that’s the warning lights again!” The Doctor shouted in frustration as he smacked the panel responsible. “I’m getting rid of those, they never stop!” He bent over to check out the systems responsible, before something echoed throughout the console room.</p><p>The three’s heads snapped over to the door, as a knock came from the door.</p><p>“Dad…” El pointed, eyebrows furrowing. “Was that a knock on the door?”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, as the knocking occurred again. “Yes.”</p><p>“…But we’re in deep space.” Will recalled.</p><p>“Very deep.” The Doctor confirmed, slowly going to the door. “And someone’s knocking.” He giggled excitedly, slowly opening the door.</p><p>The Doctor’s face became the picture of giddy shock and awe, as he looked upon the object on the other side, a glass cube with another glowing white cube nestled inside.</p><p>“Oh…” The Doctor breathed. “Come here…” He held out his hand. “Come here you scrumptious little beauty!”</p><p>The cube shot into the console room, flying around haphazardly, El yelping as it buzzed her head. The cube did a loop around the console, and smacked the Doctor in the chest, sending the Time Lord down.</p><p>“Dad,” El raised her voice, “What’s going on!?”</p><p>The Doctor held it in his hands, smiling like Christmas had come. “I’ve got mail!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Time Lord emergency messaging system.” The Doctor explained, setting the controls with a speed and precision neither El nor Will had seen up to that point. “In times of distress we’d pack up our thoughts in psychic containers and send them whizzing through time and space. Anyway, there’s a <em>living </em>Time Lord out there… <em>and it’s one of the good ones!”</em></p><p>“B-“ Will stuttered, “You said there were no more Time Lords left?”</p><p>“No more Time Lords in this universe, but this universe isn’t where we’re going!” The Doctor replied, tossing the hypercube to El. “See that snake on the front?” He pointed. “Ouroboros--the mark of the Corsair. Fantastic bloke had that tattoo in every regeneration. Never quite felt like himself unless he had it, or herself a couple of times, oho… <em>SHE WAS A BAD GIRL!”</em></p><p>The engines suddenly roared as the Doctor pushed the throttle forward, the console sparking as the entire TARDIS rumbled.</p><p>“Whoa!” Will grappled onto the railing. “What’s happening!?”</p><p>“We are leaving the universe!” The Doctor excitedly replied.</p><p>“How can you <em>leave </em>the universe!?” El questioned.</p><p>“With enormous difficulty!” The Doctor answered, dashing around each panel with a purpose. “Right now, I’m burning up extra rooms to give us some welly! Goodbye swimming pool, goodbye scullery, sayonara squash court seven!”</p><p>El yelped as the console sparked again, before the TARDIS suddenly settled.</p><p>The girl breathed heavily, steadying herself, as she looked demandingly to the Doctor. “Where are we?”</p><p>“In another universe…” The Doctor breathed. “Where we’ve never, ever been.” The generators suddenly cut out, as the lights in the console room died.</p><p>“Doctor,” Will looked around fearfully, “Is that supposed to be happening?”</p><p>“The power. It’s draining…” The Doctor muttered, looking at the controls. “I don’t understand, the coordinates I followed included directions to create a stable power conduit, the TARDIS should still be drawing power from our universe.”</p><p>“Then…” El looked to the Time Lord, as she felt something <em>dark </em>stirring outside. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“It’s like the matrix, the <em>soul </em>of the TARDIS has just… vanished.” The Doctor replied, looking around. “But where could it have gone?”</p><p>-------------</p><p>Idris’s body suddenly shot up, eyes popping open as the woman inhaled, a most unearthly metallic wheezing scraping coming from her body. The noise stopped, and the woman looked at her sparkling hands in wonder, as the Flayer retreated back out of sight.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor pulled the TARDIS doors open, warily looking out upon the decayed, overgrown landscape of London, as he took a step out.</p><p>“No…” Will shook with terror. He’d recognize the landscape instantly. “Not here! Not here!” He moved to go back into the TARDIS, but the Doctor gently stopped him.</p><p>“Will.” The Time Lord said. “I don’t blame you for being scared, but there’s people here that need our help. People that might be in the same situation that you were. You feel up to that?”</p><p>Will took a breath, the residual protection of the TARDIS preventing him from breathing in the actual air of the place, as he slowly nodded.</p><p>“The Upside Down…” El looked around, at a tree-like growth dead in the centre of the road. “But… I closed the gate.”</p><p>“You did.” The Doctor granted, looking around.</p><p>“If this is the Upside Down, that means that… <em>He’s </em>here.” Will gulped.</p><p>“Don’t worry.” The Doctor replied, tugging the cuffs of his shirt. “I sent him running once. I’ll do it again. Not saying it’ll get to that point. We’ll find the Corsair and get outta here before the Mind Flayer even has the chance to show its… face? Hm.” The Doctor tapped the side of the TARDIS. “Completely drained.” He remarked, looking at the entirely dark windows and signage. “Look at her. Now, this place is full of…” The Time Lord sniffed. “Rift energies, probably from opening and closing that gate.  The TARDIS should refuel just by being here, now-“ He bent down to pick up a broken chunk of pavement. “What do we think? Gravity’s Earth normal, to be expected.” He tossed the stone up, watching as it fell. “Air’s actually surprisingly breathable. Never been here without a spacesuit, the entire place smells like-“</p><p>“Armpits.” El finished.</p><p>“Armpits, yes.”</p><p>Will frowned, looking at the old junk scattered around. “What is all this stuff?” He poked a washing machine. “And how did it get here?”</p><p>“Well, it’s a reflection of Earth, so you shouldn’t be surprised about human tech.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“Yeah, but,” Will pointed at a yacht lying on the road a few hundred yards away. “Reflection meant everything was mirrored. My house, Castle Byers-“</p><p>“Castle Byers?” The Doctor repeated.</p><p>“The school.” Will finished. “Everything. Even after my mom put up lights in the house to try and talk to me, I could see them.”</p><p>“Okay?” The Doctor questioned. “So?”</p><p>“So why-“ Will gestured around at all the stuff. “Is all this here? I doubt all this is just in the middle of the street in London back home.”</p><p>“…good point.” The Doctor granted, looking around. “Dunno.”</p><p>El frowned. “Do you guys feel that?” She asked.</p><p>“Feel what?” The Doctor asked, looking at her.</p><p>“I don’t know. But it feels…” El frowned. “Familiar.”</p><p>“Thief!” Idris shouted, in a daze, as she came running out from the underground.</p><p>Will jumped in surprise, thinking it was one of the monsters that called the place home, as El was ready to defend them all.</p><p>“Thief!” Idris repeated, running over, as Auntie and Uncle struggled to keep up. “You’re my thief!”</p><p>“She’s dangerous!” Auntie warned as Idris ran into the Doctor’s arms. “Guard yourselves!”</p><p>“Look at you!” Idris rambled, and El blinked. The girl could sense that familiar feeling emanating from the woman, a feeling of kindness mixed with a slight bit of madness, and more than a little wanderlust. “Goodbye! No, not goodbye! What’s the other one!?”</p><p>The Doctor opened his mouth to respond, but suddenly found his lips under assault by Idris, El and Will recoiling in surprise at the fact that there were other, <em>actual </em>people there.</p><p>“Watch out!” Uncle warned as the Doctor tried to break the kiss. “Keep back from her!” Idris giggled madly as Auntie pulled her back. “Hello, strangers, welcome. Sorry about the mad person.”</p><p>The Doctor wiped his lips, looking to Idris. “Why am I a thief? What’ve I stolen?”</p><p>“Me.” Idris answered, breathless. “Are you going to steal me? No, you have stolen me. You are stealing me. Oh!” Idris blinked. “Tenses are difficult, aren’t they?”</p><p>“Oh!” Auntie walked over. “We are sorry, my dove.” She shook her head, as Idris played with El’s hair for just a moment, before walking past. “She’s off her head. They call me Auntie.”</p><p>“And I’m Uncle.” The man shrugged. “I’m everybody’s uncle.” He said to the Doctor. “Just keep back from this one,” He pointed to Idris, chuckling. “She bites!”</p><p>“Do I?” Idris asked. “Excellent!” She bit the Doctor right in the ear.</p><p>“AAAAAAUGH!” The Doctor howled in pain.</p><p>“Whoa, whoa!” Everybody clamored to remove Idris from the Doctor.</p><p>“Ow!” The Doctor yelped as Idris was pulled back. “Ow, ow!”</p><p>“Oh, biting’s excellent!” Idris remarked. “It’s like kissing, only there’s a winner!”</p><p>“Sorry.” Uncle apologized. “She’s doolally.”</p><p>“No!” Idris refuted. “I’m not doolally, I’m… I’m… It’s on the tip of my tongue!” Idris gasped, licking her lips. “I’ve just had a new idea about kissing. Come here you!” She tried to paw at the Doctor.</p><p>The Doctor yelped, running behind the two teenagers in his care for protection.</p><p>“No, Idris, no!” Auntie tried to stop her.</p><p>“Oh, but now you’re angry.” Idris recognized, turning to the Doctor. “No, you’re not. You <em>will </em>be angry.” She tilted her head. “The little boxes will make you angry.”</p><p>“Sorry,” The Doctor slowly pushed past El and Will, “Angry? The little boxes will make me angry?”</p><p>Idris suddenly laughed, grabbing a part of the Doctor’s face. “Your chin is hilarious!” Her head suddenly snapped to Will. “It means the smell of dust after rain.”</p><p>Will blinked in confusion. Whatever was going on, it probably <em>wasn’t </em>the Mind Flayer, that much he was certain of now. “What does?”</p><p>“Petrichor.” Idris answered.</p><p>Will recoiled slightly. “I didn’t ask.”</p><p>“Not yet. But you will.” Idris’s head suddenly snapped over to El. “Jane. It’s lovely to see you.”</p><p>El gasped in shock. How did a complete and total stranger know her name?</p><p>“No, no, Idris.” Auntie pulled her away. “I think you should have a rest.”</p><p>“Rest, yes, yes!” Idris nodded. “I’ll just see if there’s an off switch.” She said, suddenly collapsing.</p><p>“Whoa!” The Doctor caught her before she could hit the ground, gently setting her down nearby.</p><p>“Is that it? Is she dead now?” Uncle shook his head, not sounding bothered in the slightest. “So sad.”</p><p>“Well, she’s still breathing.” Will pointed, noting the slow and steady rise and fall of Idris’s bosom.</p><p>“Uh, Nephew,” The man turned to the Ood with the glowing eyes. “Take Idris somewhere where she cannot bite people, yes?”</p><p>“Oh, an Ood.” El recognized.</p><p>“Ah, Ood!” The Doctor walked over. “Oods are good, I like Oods! Hello, Ood!” The Doctor looked Nephew up and down. “Can’t you talk?”</p><p>Nephew held up its dead translator sphere.</p><p>“Ah, broken. Can I see?”</p><p>Nephew nodded, as the Doctor went to examine the orb.</p><p>“It may just be tuned to the wrong frequency…”</p><p>“Nephew was broken when he came here.” Auntie began. “Why, he was half dead. The Intelligence repaired him. The Intelligence repaired all of us.”</p><p>The Doctor finished fiddling with the sphere, the orb glowing red orange. <em>“If you are receiving this message, please help me.” </em>A male voice begged. <em>“Send a signal to the High Council of Time Lords on Gallifrey. Tell them that I am still alive. Tell them I am in the Dark Universe! Please, send help!”</em></p><p>Nephew’s orb cut out and the Doctor looked up in shock.</p><p>“Dad…” El gulped, feeling a shiver run down her spine. The Time Lords knew of the Upside Down…</p><p>And they were scared of it.</p><p>“What was that?” El asked. “Was that him?”</p><p>“No, no…” The Doctor denied in shock. “It’s picking up something else. But… but that’s not possible! Who else is here!?” The Time Lord demanded of Auntie and Uncle. “Show me!”</p><p>“Just what you see.” Auntie stammered. “Just the four of us and the Intelligence. Nephew!” She pointed to the Ood. “Take Idris somewhere she can’t hurt nobody!”</p><p>“The Intelligence?” The Doctor repeated. “Who’s that?”</p><p>Auntie gestured around. “He’s all <em>around </em>you!” She explained, the pit in Will’s stomach growing deep, as El began to feel similarly. “This is the Intelligence… the whole world! Would you like to meet him?”</p><p>“Meet him!?” Will fearfully repeated. “Doctor, you know she’s probably talking about-!”</p><p>The Doctor stopped Will with a raised finger as he continued looking at Auntie. “I’d love to.”</p><p>“This way.” Uncle gestured, allowing Auntie to take the lead. “Come, please. Come.”</p><p>“You know she has to be talking about-“ Will hissed, lowering his voice. “The Mind Flayer.”</p><p>“I know…” The Doctor replied. “But this just got a lot more complicated…” He turned around. “Those voices we heard… Time Lords. Somewhere close by there’s lots and lots of… Time Lords.” The Doctor walked to catch up, to the other two, El following, as Will stood frozen in place. Given the choice to go back into the TARDIS, but remain on his own, and the choice of remaining out here in the Upside Down, but by the Doctor’s side, the safest place in the universe.</p><p>Will shook, as he moved to catch up.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0092"><h2>92. The Mind Flayer Returns</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“So, Dark Universe,” El whispered to the Doctor. “What does that mean?”</p><p>“…It’s an old Time Lord fairytale.” The Doctor answered, voice just as low. “They used it to warn against Time Lords going renegade. It’d lure you in with your greatest desire… and then…”</p><p>“And then what?” Will asked fearfully.</p><p>“…can’t remember.” The Doctor replied, in a tone that suggested he was probably lying.</p><p>------------</p><p>“Come,” Uncle guided them into a small room, a vent grate on the floor, “Come, come. Now you can see the Intelligence and he can look at you and…”</p><p>The Doctor peered into the grate, seeing the storm churn distantly below. It wasn’t attacking them.</p><p><em>Why </em>wasn’t the Mind Flayer attacking them?</p><p>“Superorganism.” The Doctor recognized. “Connected to every other living thing on this planet. Even if everything else was destroyed, if even a single lifeform survived, so would you."</p><p><strong><em>“Greetings, Time Lord.” </em></strong>Auntie and Uncle stiffened, a deep baritone voice emerging from them, undercut with the voice of over a million different lifeforms speaking in unison. <strong><em>“Greetings, Eleven. Greetings… William.”</em></strong></p><p>El stared at the two, glaring, shielding Will behind her. The boy’s breathing grew labored, as he tried to focus on his lifeline.</p><p>“Hello again,” The Doctor responded, “It’s been-“ He checked his watch, “About four-thousand years on this side since we closed that gate. How’ve you been?”</p><p>“Dad,” El hissed, “What are you doing?”</p><p>“Well, he hasn’t made any moves to harm us yet, so.” The Doctor shrugged.</p><p><strong><em>“The years, I feel, have been… an influence on my being.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer responded. <strong><em>“Isolation and time are the best motivators to get a mind thinking. Since my defeat, I have… ‘turned over a new leaf’ as you humanoids would say.”</em></strong></p><p>“Don’t listen to it!” Will snarled. “It’s lying!”</p><p><strong><em>“William.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer addressed. <strong><em>“I understand your… reluctance to trust me, but understand, it is the truth. And I am… sorry. For all the pain my actions have caused you and your… family.”</em></strong></p><p>Will recoiled in shock. “What?” He muttered.</p><p>“So, you turned over a new leaf.” The Doctor applauded. “Glad to hear. But Auntie, Uncle, Idris, and Nephew, they’re not the sort of lifeforms you grow around here. Where’d you find them?”</p><p><strong><em>“Many Time Lords have come to this place.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer responded. <strong><em>“Either by intent, or accident. The sounds of many TARDISes once filled the air here.”</em></strong></p><p>“Hmm…” The Doctor frowned. “Once?”</p><p><strong><em>“Alas, the days of visiting Time Lords are long gone. Auntie, Uncle, Idris, and their servant were the last.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer explained. <strong><em>“They are my… charges. I take care of them. Repair them when they break.”</em></strong></p><p>“Ah, well, there won’t be any more after us either.” The Doctor shrugged. “Last Time Lord, last TARDIS.”</p><p><strong><em>“A pity.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer replied. <strong><em>“Your people were… kind. You may rest here in safety, Doctor. I will not attempt anything… untoward. You have my word.”</em></strong></p><p>Auntie, Uncle, and Nephew all relaxed, shaking their heads as they dispersed.</p><p>“We’re not <em>staying!?” </em>Will hissed.</p><p>“Ah, why not?” The Doctor shrugged. “He’s seemed to have mellowed out a lot.” He turned to Auntie. “Mind if we have a poke around? Last time we were here, there really wasn’t a chance to look without something trying to kill us.”</p><p>“You can look all you want.” Auntie replied with a kind smile. “He loves you…” She giggled, rubbing Will’s head.</p><p>The boy shuddered at the feeling of the woman’s hand. It was <em>much </em>bigger than it looked.</p><p>“Right,” The Doctor clapped, turning around. “Come on, gang. Let’s go see the sights.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>Idris sat locked in a cage, legs crossed, and eyes closed like she was meditating. “lE enolc ot gniyrt t'nerew ecneliS ehT. Oh!” Her eyes popped open. “What was that? Do fish have fingers?” Her head darted back and forth. “Like a nine-year-old trying to rebuild a motorbike in his bedroom. I am so very glad to be your mama.” She suddenly snapped herself out of it. “What am I saying? Why am I saying it?” She grabbed the bars of her cell. “Thief? Where’s my thief? THIEF!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor, leading Will and El through the corridor-like cave, distantly hear Idris’s yell, stopping to listen.</p><p>“Doctor, as soon as the TARDIS is fueled back up, can we go?” Will asked, almost to the point of begging.</p><p>“Not until we figure out what’s going on.” The Doctor replied. <em>“El, don’t react.” </em>He sent to her telepathically. <em>“Don’t let on that anything’s happening.” </em>He instructed as he simultaneously spoke aloud. “There are Time Lords here, and they need help.”</p><p><em>“What’s going on?” </em>El sent back. “Dad, you told me about the Time Lords, and you told me about what you did.”</p><p>“Yes, yes.” The Doctor waved it away. <em>“Will was right, the Mind Flayer is up to something. Just because it hasn’t killed us now, doesn’t mean it won’t.” </em>“But if they’re like the Corsair, they’re good ones, and I can save them!”</p><p>“And then tell them you killed everybody else?” El whispered back. <em>“If it’s up to something, how do we stop it?”</em></p><p><em>“We can’t. Not while we’re on its home turf.” </em>The Doctor sent back. <em>“The Time Lords were scared of this place for a reason, those who were said to have found it never returned. Some thought it was because it was a paradise on the other side, others thought it was because it was Hell.” </em>“I can explain, tell them why I had to.”</p><p>“You want them to forgive you.” El recognized. <em>“So, what do you want me to do?”</em></p><p>“…Is that such a bad thing?” The Doctor asked in response. <em>“Take Will back to the TARDIS. Don’t let him know what’s actually going on, I don’t know if the Mind Flayer can hear speech via these tendrils and stuff growing everywhere, but the answer’s probably yes.”</em></p><p>El sighed aloud. “What do you need from me?”</p><p>“My screwdriver,” The Doctor patted his pockets, “I left it in my other jacket.” <em>“Keep standing by the phone, be ready for it. I don’t know what I’m going to find, but we might have to get out of here quickly.”</em></p><p>“You’re wearing your jacket.” Will pointed out.</p><p>“My other jacket.” The Doctor elaborated.</p><p>“You have two of those?” Will frowned.</p><p>El shook her head. “Don’t worry, we’ll get it. Come on, Will.” El grasped his hand, moving to lead him. “Be careful, dad.”</p><p>The Doctor saluted. “Yes, ma’am.”</p><p>----------</p><p>El and Will remained quiet as they walked back to the TARDIS, pushing inside. The doors shut behind them, but the moment they did…</p><p>Lighting sparked in the sky as the Mind Flayer freed itself from the ground, coalescing into the same spider-like form it preferred, before one of its tendrils formed into a cyclone, coming down upon the ship.</p><p>----------</p><p>El walked over to the console, dialing the phone. It rung for just a moment, before the Doctor picked up. “We made it. Did you actually need your screwdriver, or was that a trick?”</p><p>
  <em>“Oh, clever trick. You wanna hear an even cleverer trick?”</em>
</p><p>The door clanged as it was suddenly deadlocked.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor hung up, shoving his phone back into his pocket, before continuing along his way.</p><p>“Come on…” He muttered, closing his eyes. “Where are you…?” Indistinct ghostly clamoring filled his mind as he reached out a mental feeler. Following it back to the source, the Doctor walked over to a curtain on the wall, pulling it back.</p><p>He blinked at the tiny alcove on the other side. “Well, they can’t all be in here.” Except, that same ethereal chatter caught his attention again, and the Doctor’s eyes locked on the small blue safe embedded into the wall.</p><p>The Doctor pulled it open, and every last hope he had was immediately dashed upon seeing the rows of glowing cubes inside, each one screaming for help with a different voice.</p><p>The Time Lord dimly registered two sets of footsteps behind him. “Don’t mind me… just admiring your Time Lord distress signal collection.” He muttered, swallowing. “Nice job. Brilliant job…” He sniffed. “Really thought I had some friends here. But <em>this </em>is what the Ood translator picked up. Cries for help from the long dead.”</p><p>The Doctor turned around, glaring at Auntie and Uncle. “How many Time Lords have you lured here like you did me?” He quietly seethed. “And what happened to them all?”</p><p>“The-“ Auntie stammered. “The Intelligence is kind, he is wise. He-“</p><p>“He repairs you when you break!” He cut her off, yelling. “Yes, I know! But how does he mend you, huh?” He took the sonic screwdriver, scanning Uncle. “You’ve got the eyes of a twenty-year-old.”</p><p>“Oh, thank you.”</p><p>“No, I mean your eyes are forty years younger than you.” The Doctor growled, ripping off the man’s head covering, revealing two ears of wildly different skin tones. “Your ears don’t match, your right arm is two inches longer than your left, and how’s your dancing!? Cause you’ve got two left feet!” The Time Lord seethed with rage. “Patchwork people. Stitched together with the remains of old Time Lords. And you’ve been ‘repaired’ so much I doubt there’s anything left of the people you used to be. I had an umbrella like you once.”</p><p>Auntie picked under her fingernail, and the Doctor smacked her hand, grabbing her overly large left arm. “Oh, this has been a great arm for me, this.” She remarked, flashing the wrist and the ouroboros tattoo.</p><p>“The Corsair…” The Doctor breathed in horror.</p><p>“Oh, he was a strapping big bloke, wasn’t he?” Auntie asked of uncle. “Yeah, I got the arm, Uncle got the kidneys.”</p><p>The Doctor looked to them, huffing. “You gave me hope and then took it away. That’s enough to make anyone angry, <em>God </em>knows what it’ll do to me. Basically…” The Time Lord shook. <strong><em><span class="u">“RUN!”</span></em></strong></p><p>The two dashed off, as the Doctor stood, rubbing his face in grief.</p><p>“…’Boxes will make you angry.’” The Doctor muttered, suddenly looking up. “’The little boxes will make you angry.’ How could she have known?</p><p>He suddenly dashed down one of the tunnels, finding the room he sought.</p><p>“How did you know!?” The Doctor demanded, running in. “You said the boxes will make me angry, how did you know!?”</p><p>“Ah…” Idris, still locked in the cage, breathed. “It’s my thief.”</p><p>“Who are you?” The Doctor demanded.</p><p>Idris opened her eyes. “It’s about time.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The lamp on top of the TARDIS cracked and split open, as the Mind Flayer began to force its immense being inside.</p><p>----------</p><p>Will sat on the seat, bouncing his leg up and down, before something caught his attention.</p><p>“Uh oh…” He breathed, El whipping around.</p><p>Red light shone through the door windows.</p><p>------------</p><p>“I don’t understand,” The Doctor began, “Who are you?”</p><p>“Do you really not know me?” Idris asked, tilting her head as she sounded just a bit hurt. “Just because they put me in here?”</p><p>The Doctor huffed. “They said you were dangerous.”</p><p>“Not the cage, stupid.” Idris stood up. “In here.” She held her hands on the side of her head. “They put me in <em>here</em>. I’m the- Oh, what do you call me? We travel!” She pointed with a smile. “I go;” She opened her mouth, a metallic wheezing and scraping filling the air.</p><p>“The TARDIS?” The Doctor incredulously laughed.</p><p>“Time And Relative Dimension In Space, that’s it. Names are funny. It’s me...” She grasped the bars of her cell. “I’m the TARDIS.”</p><p>“…No you’re <em>not!” </em>The Doctor refuted. “You’re a bitey mad lady! The TARDIS is up and downy stuff in a big blue box!” The Doctor turned, walking away.</p><p>“Yes, that’s me.” Idris pointed. “A Type Forty TARDIS. I was already a museum piece when you were young… and the first time you touched my console you said-“</p><p>“I said you were the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.” The Doctor finished, shaking his head.</p><p>“And then you stole me… and I stole you.”</p><p>The Doctor swallowed. “I didn’t steal you… I borrowed you.”</p><p>“Borrowing implied the intention of returning the thing that was taken.” Idris retorted. “What makes you think I would ever give <em>you </em>back?”</p><p>The Doctor slowly turned around, as it hit him that, <em>yes, </em>this was actually happening. “You’re the TARDIS?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“MY TARDIS!?”</p><p>“My Doctor!” The TARDIS returned. “Oh!” She stood back from the cage door. “We’ve now reached the point in the conversation where you <em>open the lock</em>.”</p><p>The Doctor, after a moment’s hesitation, took the sonic screwdriver, and unlocked the door, the heavy metal bars creaking as they swung slowly open.</p><p>The TARDIS stepped out, approaching the Doctor with a curiously tilted head. “Are all people like this?”</p><p>“Like what?” The Time Lord asked.</p><p>“So much… bigger on the inside.” The TARDIS answered. “I’m-“ She suddenly turned. “Oh, what <em>is </em>that word!? It’s so big, and so complicated… and so sad…”</p><p>“But why?” The Doctor wondered. “Why take the soul of the TARDIS and pop it in an organic body? What does the Mind Flayer want you for?”</p><p>“Well it doesn’t want <em>me.” </em>The TARDIS sniffed the air around the Doctor.</p><p>“How do you know?” The Doctor asked, checking his jacket for whatever she was smelling for.</p><p>“It can flay TARDISes.”</p><p>“Sorry, what!?”</p><p>“I dunno.” The TARDIS shrugged. “Something I heard you say.”</p><p>“When!?”</p><p>“In the future.”</p><p>“It can flay TARDISes!?”</p><p>“Oh!” She placed a finger on his lips. “There you go! What are fish fingers?”</p><p>“When do I say that?” The Doctor spluttered.</p><p>“Any second.”</p><p>“Of course!” The Doctor realized. “TARDISes aren’t just ships, they’re lifeforms, like any lifeform, the Mind Flayer can possess their bodies. And not raw, all lovely and cooked processed food… mmm… fish fingers.”</p><p>“Do fish have fingers?” The TARDIS asked.</p><p>The Doctor spluttered. “But, the Mind Flayer can’t just possess a TARDIS, it would destroy it! Unless, <em>unless-“</em></p><p>“Unless,” The TARDIS herself cut in. “It deleted the TARDIS matrix first.”</p><p>The Doctor let out a derisive laugh. “So it <em>deleted </em>you.”</p><p>“But the Mind Flayer can’t just delete a TARDIS consciousness that would blow a hole in the universe!” The TARDIS began rambling. “So it pulls out the Matrix, sticks it in a living receptacle, and then possesses the empty shell! Oh!” The TARDIS gasped. “You were about to say all that… I don’t suppose you have to now.”</p><p>The Doctor’s face went slack with horror. “I sent El and Will in there, they’re about to be hijacked! El!” He held the phone to his ear, running out of the room. “El! Get the hell outta there!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dad,” El tried working the door release as Will pulled at the door, “Something’s wrong.”</p><p>
  <em>“It’s the Mind Flayer, it’s trying to possess the TARDIS!”</em>
</p><p>-----------</p><p>The air sparked as the last bits of the Mind Flayer’s colossal, swarm-like form forced its way into the lamp on the top of the TARDIS’s shell.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dad, we can’t get out!” El spoke into the phone. “You locked the door, remember!?”</p><p>
  <em>“But I’ve unlocked it!”</em>
</p><p>“No you haven’t!” El replied.</p><p>The cloister bell began to toll, as the light outside died down.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor ran, following the echoing of the cloister bell, grunting in rage as he tried to send the unlock command again with the sonic screwdriver.</p><p>The windows and signage of the TARDIS, normally a cool white, began to glow a sinister red.</p><p>“Open!” The Doctor frantically snapped his fingers, coming to a stop.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Dad?” El spoke, as the phone line went dead.</p><p>-----------</p><p><em>“OPEN THIS DOOR!”</em> The Doctor bellowed.</p><p>----------</p><p>The console room went totally dark.</p><p>“Will…” El shakily reached out. “Please… hold my hand.” She gulped, feeling the sheer <em>evil </em>filling the air.</p><p>---------</p><p>“El!” The Doctor banged on the doors of the police box shell. “Will!”</p><p>The engines engaged with a thud, sounding… diseased, as the Mind Flayer’s new body began to dematerialize.</p><p>The Doctor stepped back as the Mind Flayer vanished, reaching into his pocket for his phone. “Hello? El?”</p><p>Not even a dial tone. The Mind Flayer must’ve disconnected the communication circuit.</p><p>“Okay, right, I don’t…” The Doctor’s hand dropped, staring at the space where the blue box had been. “I don’t know what to do.” He chuckled. “That’s a new feeling.” The Time Lord quickly slapped himself, running back into the tunnels.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The time rotor rose and fell, the engines sounding like they were struggling quite a bit, as Will and El stood in the console room.</p><p>“Okay… it’s okay…” Will shakily breathed, the hairs on his neck now at full attention. “We’re inside the TARDIS, so we’re safe.”</p><p><strong><em>“You’re half right, William.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer’s deep baritone echoed throughout. <strong><em>“You </em>are <em>in the TARDIS.”</em></strong></p><p>El and Will clung to each other, looking around as the console room lights began to glow a sickly red.</p><p>“Oh, I <em>knew </em>it.” Will muttered. “I knew you were up to something.”</p><p><strong><em>“But of course. Something you humans fail to understand, being immortal only makes you </em>more <em>patient when it comes to your plans.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer replied. <strong><em>“I’ve been planning this for quite a while, and now it’s finally come to fruition. How exciting. Now… since I already have what I require, tell me this. Eleven, William… why shouldn’t I just kill you now?”</em></strong></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0093"><h2>93. You Sexy Thing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor jumped over a bit of junk on the floor, running back into the cage room. “It’s gone!”</p><p>“Stolen?” The TARDIS guessed.</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Stolen. But why?”</p><p>“It’s,” Auntie groggily walked in, sitting down on a chair, “Time for us both to go, Uncle, you and I, together.”</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” The Doctor looked over. “Go!? What do you mean, go!?”</p><p>“Well, we’re dying my love.” Auntie replied. “It’s time for Auntie and Uncle to pop off.”</p><p>Uncle shrugged. “I’m against it.”</p><p>“But…” The Doctor shook. “<em>Why!?”</em></p><p>“Well, it’s your fault, isn’t it sweets?” Auntie asked of the Time Lord.</p><p><em>“My </em>fault!?”</p><p>“Yeah, the Flayer did all of it for you you know.” Auntie replied.</p><p>“For <em>me?”</em></p><p>“Time Lords were the only ones that might’ve posed a threat to it.” Uncle shrugged. “But he hated you the most after that… Big Boom put him back here.” He blankly waved. “So he thought he could lure in Time Lords into traps until he got you.”</p><p>“I got that!” The Doctor replied. “But why does he want my TARDIS’s body!?”</p><p>“Well, he can spread, but it takes a while to get from planet to planet.” Auntie shrugged. “He thought if he could possess a TARDIS he could use the… thingies inside to make more of his shadow bugs to spread across the universe.”</p><p>“But I’m not the first he’s lured!” The Doctor shot back. “Why hasn’t he done this before!?”</p><p>“He’s tried.” Uncle croaked. “Destroyed all the others learning how to fly them.”</p><p>“Doesn’t matter how much he’s learned.” The Doctor growled. “He’s never going to find a way back into my universe.”</p><p>Auntie blinked. “He’ll think of something.” She said, suddenly keeling over.</p><p>The Doctor rushed over to examine her.</p><p>“Actually,” Uncle stood up, “I feel fine.” He suddenly collapsed as well.</p><p>“Not dead!” The Doctor frustratedly looked between them. “You can’t just die!”</p><p>“Doctor,” The TARDIS suddenly stood up. “We need to go where I landed, quickly.”</p><p>“Why?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“Because we are there in three minutes. We need to go… now!” She ran forward, hip suddenly popping. “Ow!”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor worriedly looked at her.</p><p>“Roughly how long do these bodies last?”</p><p>The Doctor scanned her over with the sonic, blinking as he looked at the core of the device. “You’re dying…”</p><p>“Yes, of course I’m dying.” The TARDIS snatched the sonic screwdriver from him. “Even a Time Lord body can’t handle holding my mind. No,” She looked to the Doctor. “Stop it. Don’t get emotional. You’re the Doctor. Focus.” She ordered, handing him back the screwdriver.</p><p>“On what!?” The Doctor retorted. “I’m a madman with a box without the box!” He shoved the screwdriver into his pocket. “I’m stuck in a dead universe in a stupid old junkyard! Oh…” He suddenly inhaled. “Oh…”</p><p>“Oh what?” The TARDIS asked.</p><p>“Cause it’s not just a junkyard.” The Doctor turned around. It took him a moment to piece it together. “It’s not just a junkyard! Come on!” He excitedly shot forward, pulling her along. “Oh, sorry, do you have a name?”</p><p>The TARDIS rolled her eyes. “Seven-hundred years, finally he asks.”</p><p>“So, what do I call you?”</p><p>“I think you call me…” The TARDIS smiled sultrily. “Sexy.”</p><p>The Doctor blushed. “Only when we’re alone.”</p><p>The TARDIS tilted her head. “We are alone.”</p><p>“Well then…” The Doctor winked flirtatiously. “Come on then, Sexy.”</p><p>-------------</p><p><strong><em>“Corridors…</em></strong>” The Mind Flayer remarked, the hellish red glow pulsating with its ‘speech.’ <strong><em>“I have corridors. So much to learn about my new home. But… you haven’t answered my question, children.”</em></strong></p><p>El gulped. “What question?”</p><p><strong><em>“You remember…” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer replied. <strong><em>“Tell me why I shouldn’t just kill you both now.”</em></strong></p><p>“Uh…” El stammered. “Because… Will?” She looked to him.</p><p>The boy looked fearfully betrayed, as El silently begged him to answer. “Because…” Will swallowed. “Killing us quickly wouldn’t be any fun.”</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“Fun?”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>“Yeah…” Will shakily continued. “I was connected to you; I know how you think… That’s what Auntie and Uncle were for. Someone to make suffer. I had bullies in school just like you.” Will regretted that the moment it left his mouth, just in case the Mind Flayer took offense to it. “Immortal alien like yourself, you need to be entertained. And killing us right now wouldn’t be entertaining.”</p><p>
  <strong><em>“So entertain me… </em>run.”</strong>
</p><p>El grabbed Will’s hand, pulling him along as she charged up the steps.</p><p>------------</p><p>“I can’t believe I didn’t notice it before!” The Doctor commented, running up to the junkyard. “Will said something was off here… and what Uncle said confirmed it.”</p><p>“Confirmed what?” The TARDIS inquired.</p><p>The Doctor turned to her. “TARDIS matrix like you, you’ve gotta sense when there’re chameleon circuits nearby.”</p><p>“…yes.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “So, deactivate them.”</p><p>The TARDIS reached out with her mind, and every discarded bit of junk, even the beached yacht that Will had pointed out, began to glow intensely white, becoming something else. Some became enormous, dilapidated cathedral-like buildings colored bronze, others looked like more traditional starships, and some were so large it made mountains look positively small.</p><p>The Doctor grinned. “It’s not just a junkyard… it’s a <em>TARDIS</em> junkyard. You thinking what I’m thinking?”</p><p>“…I’m thinking that all my sisters are dead.” The TARDIS whispered mournfully. “That they were ripped from their homes, and now we’re looking at their corpses.”</p><p>“Uh, no.” The Doctor replied. “That’s not what I was thinking at all.”</p><p>“No…” The TARDIS turned to her Time Lord. “You were thinking you could build a functioning TARDIS console out of parts from a thousand different models. And you don’t care that it’s impossible.”</p><p>“It’s not impossible,” The Doctor retorted, “So long as we’re alive. El and Will need us. So, yeah…” The Doctor smiled giddily.</p><p>“We’re going to build a TARDIS.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The door hissed as El and Will sprinted through, the normally warm orange lighting of the corridor glowing the same hostile red.</p><p><strong><em>“So, are we having fun yet?” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer taunted, as the two humans came to a junction. <strong><em>“I’m rather enjoying the sensation of having you two running around inside my being.”</em></strong></p><p>El pulled Will down the corridor on the right, yelping as she narrowly stopped herself from falling down a deep pit.</p><p><strong><em>“I’ve turned off the corridor anti-grav, so do be careful.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer ‘helpfully’ explained.</p><p>El pressed herself against the wall, inching along the narrow edge, before finding the other corridor on the other side. Will yelped as he almost slipped and fell, but El pulled him back, and the two continued.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS looked at a small, portable scanner, tapping something into the device. “Bond the tube directly into the tachyon diverter.” She instructed.</p><p>“Yes,” The Doctor grunted, pulling a segment of wall behind him, “I have actually rebuilt a TARDIS before you know, I know what I’m doing!”</p><p>“You’re like a nine-year-old trying to rebuild a motorbike in his bedroom.” The TARDIS retorted. “And you <em>never </em>read the instructions.”</p><p>“I always read the instructions!” The Doctor shot back.</p><p>“There’s a sign on my front door that you’ve been walking past for seven-hundred years.”</p><p>“Those aren’t instructions!”</p><p>“There’s an instruction at the bottom, what does it say?”</p><p>“…’Pull to Open.’”</p><p>“And what do you do?”</p><p>“…I push!” The Doctor grunted, angrily pulling the wall.</p><p>The TARDIS shook her head. “Every single time. Seven-hundred years, Police Box doors open <em>out </em>the way.”</p><p>“You know,” The Doctor angrily released the segment, “I think I’ve earned the right to open my front doors anyway I want!”</p><p>“<em>Your</em> front doors?” The TARDIS responded. “Have you any idea how childish that sounds?”</p><p>“You are not my mother.” The Doctor grumbled.</p><p>“And you are not my child!” The TARDIS retorted. “That position is reserved for Jane.” She murmured.</p><p>“You know, since we’re talking, with mouths, not an opportunity that comes around very often, I just want to say you know you-“ He pointed, “Have never been very reliable.”</p><p>“And you have?”</p><p>“You never took me where I wanted to go!” The Doctor explained.</p><p>“No,” The TARDIS granted, “But I always took you where you <em>needed </em>to go.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, every trace of anger suddenly forgotten as he realized just how right she was. “You did…” He whipped back around to face her. “Look at us, talking! What if we could talk all the time, even when you’re stuck inside the box!?”</p><p>The TARDIS blinked. “But you know I’m not constructed that way. I exist across all space and time, <em>you </em>talk, and run around, and bring home strays!” The TARDIS suddenly groaned, as she tipped forward.</p><p>The Doctor caught her. Seven-hundred years of the TARDIS being there for him, time to return the favor. “You okay?”</p><p>“…one of my hearts has already failed.” The TARDIS shook her head. “It doesn’t matter, we have to finish assembling the console.”</p><p>“Using a console without a proper shell, oho…” The Doctor huffed. “It’s not gonna be safe.”</p><p>“This body has about eighteen minutes left to live.” The TARDIS retorted. “The environment we’re in is totally hostile to uninfected lifeforms. Safe is relative.”</p><p>The Doctor turned around. “Then we need to get a move on, eh old girl?” He started pulling the wall again.</p><p>------------</p><p>El and Will ran, just like they had been, trying to keep their breathing steady as they could. Will fell back behind just slightly, and as El continued, a door began to shut.</p><p>“El!” Will yelled, pounding on the door.</p><p>El stopped, turning around, banging on the door as well. “No!” She reached out with her mind, trying to pull it open, to no effect.</p><p>“El…” A voice out of energy called, and the girl turned around. “El…”</p><p>El slowly walked down the corridor, peeking around the corridor, seeing Will sitting down in front of a similarly closed door.</p><p>“Will?”</p><p>The boy looked over in surprise, getting to his feet. “El? Where’ve you been?”</p><p>“I-I just,” She moved to rejoin him, “Went through that door and came back around.”</p><p>Will frowned. “You’ve been gone <em>hours</em>.”</p><p>“…it’s him.” El realized, daring not to say the Mind Flayer’s name. “He’s messing with the TARDIS. Come on…” She took his hand so they wouldn’t get separated again.</p><p>El took charge down another corridor, and continued to run, when suddenly, Will’s hand slipped from hers.</p><p>She turned to look, as a door clamped shut, separating them again.</p><p>“NO!” El screamed in fury, banging on the door again.</p><p>She turned around, hearing something.</p><p>Someone was… crying?</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Now, install the time rotor.” The TARDIS instructed, as the Doctor carried over the only working Time Rotor in the place he could find.</p><p>“How is this supposed to make it into space?” The Doctor wondered, putting the Time Rotor into place. “Ah, well, we’re almost done. Now, thrust diffuser.” He checked the panels on the junk console. “Retroscope… Blue thingy.”</p><p>“Doctor?” The TARDIS called, looking at a coat hanger. “Do you ever wonder why I chose you all those years ago?”</p><p>“I chose you.” The Doctor retorted. “You were unlocked.”</p><p>“Of course I was.” The TARDIS huffed. “I wanted to see the universe,” She started, walking over, “So I stole a Time Lord and ran away.” She explained with a smile. “And you were the only one mad enough.”</p><p>The Doctor ran over, turning around to look at the junk console. “Right. Perfect. Look at that.” He gestured. “What could possibly go wrong?”</p><p>One of the parts suddenly sprung off.</p><p>“Don’t worry, that’s meant to happen.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El slowly pushed herself forward, through the slightly darker hallways.</p><p>“…El?” The crying stopped, and aged, hoarse voice speaking up.</p><p>El turned around and breathed in horror. “Will?”</p><p>The thirteen-year-old she knew not just moments ago was now much, much older. Hair grown out past his shoulders and grey with age, a thick beard of similar color around his face.</p><p>How <em>long </em>was Will in there?</p><p>“You left me…” Will rasped. “How could you do that? You could you leave me? You were my friend and you left me…”</p><p>El swallowed. “How long?”</p><p>Will banged his head against the wall in anger. “Fifty years of waiting! Fifty years…”</p><p>“I didn’t… I didn’t mean to.”</p><p>Will screamed with anger, lunging, as El yelped, scrambling out of the way.</p><p>“Will?” El fearfully asked.</p><p>“…they come for me at night.” Will looked to her, old eyes twisted in pain. “They come for me and night ant they hurt me… they won’t even Flay me. It won’t let the pain stop.”</p><p>El felt tears prickle at her eyes as she got to her feet. “Will…”</p><p>“How could you leave me!?” Will wailed, El shaking with fear as she scrambled back again. “How could you do that to me!?”</p><p>His voice echoed even as the doors clamped shut again.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The TARDIS put the coat hanger onto a chain, before the Doctor passed her a pair of velvet ropes.</p><p>“Right.” The Doctor remarked, as the TARDIS fastened the ropes. “Okay, let’s go! Follow that TARDIS!” He pulled on the hanger, the machine whirring and going dead a millisecond later. “Oh, no, come on!” He groaned. “There’s rift energy everywhere, you can do it!”</p><p>The TARDIS caught her own face in the mirror, and she played with it experimentally.</p><p>“Okay, diverting all power to thrust!” The Doctor tried. “Let’s be having you!” The electricity in the console whirred, before it sparked. “No, no!” The Time Lord shouted.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” The TARDIS inquired.</p><p>“It can’t hold the charge.” The Doctor frustratedly replied. “It can’t even start! There’s no power.”</p><p>The TARDIS played with her lip in the mirror.</p><p>“Will you-“ The Doctor’s hand covered the reflective surface, and he sighed. “I’ve got nothing.”</p><p>“Oh, you beautiful idiot.” The TARDIS replied. “You have what you’ve <em>always </em>had… you’ve got me.” The TARDIS kissed her fingers, eyes glowing a sparkling gold, as she touched the time rotor.</p><p>The Junk TARDIS began to shake and rattle, a sphere of yellow energy covering the outside as it dematerialized.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El’s eyes caught the wall, and she swallowed. Words were inscribed on them, some colored black, but most the color of dried blood.</p><p>That wasn’t what unsettled her, thought.</p><p>‘HATE EL. KILL EL. DIE EL.’ Most of the words were that simple combination, the repeating, simple phrasing and madly scribbled pattern showing that, when Will had written them, he was <em>not </em>in a stable place.</p><p>She slowly turned the corner, afraid of what she might find, and for good reason.</p><p>Leaning on a wall, in Will’s old, torn clothes, was a skeleton.</p><p>“…NO!” El screamed in anguish, running over. “NO! WILL!” She sobbed, falling to her knees. “No… I didn’t…” She cried, crawling over. “I’m sorry… I’m sorry…“</p><p>“El?”</p><p>El gasped, turning around.</p><p>Will was there, perfectly fine.</p><p>El turned back, the skeleton, the words, all of it, gone.</p><p>The girl got to her feet, sprinting into Will’s arms. “I love you. I love you…”</p><p>“Um…” Will stuttered. “I love you too, I guess.” He confusedly replied, placing steadying hands on her shoulders. “Listen, it’s just messing with our heads. Come on, run.”</p><p>El nodded, keeping herself attached to Will’s side as they continued.</p><p>They were <em>not </em>getting separated again, not on her watch.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0094"><h2>94. Bigger on the Inside</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“WOO-HOO!” The Doctor whooped as the Junk TARDIS broke the sphere of influence of the Upside Down-Earth.</p><p>“We’ve locked onto them!” The TARDIS shouted over the roaring crackle of the scrap ship. “They’ll have to lower the shields when we’re close enough to phase inside!”</p><p>“Can you get a message to El!?” The Doctor inquired. “The telepathic circuits are online!”</p><p>“Which one’s El!?”</p><p>“You don’t remember!?” The Doctor shot back. “You called her your child a few minutes ago!”</p><p>“The brain’s going a bit mush!” The TARDIS replied. “Right now, I’m no longer certain if it’s actually you, or an uncoordinated cat playing about at being a person!”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes. “She’s the…”</p><p>“Is she the pretty one!?” The TARDIS asked.</p><p>----------</p><p>Will was climbing up one of the service ladders, El just behind him, before he suddenly felt a spike drive into his head, and he gasped in pain, wrenching his eyes shut.</p><p>
  <em>“Hello pretty!”</em>
</p><p>“Will?” El called up. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“It’s like… I’m getting a message.” His brow knit in confusion. “What the hell is that?”</p><p><em>“Don’t worry!” </em>The Doctor intruded into the field of vision, next to the woman dressed in Victorian clothing. <em>“Telepathic messaging! No, that’s Will!” </em>He explained, darting out of shot.</p><p><em>“You have to go to the old control room.” </em>The TARDIS explained. <em>“I’m putting the route in your head. When you get there use the purple slider on the closest panel to lower the shields.”</em></p><p>The Doctor abruptly darted back in. <em>“The pretty one!?” </em>He spluttered, grunting as he was shaken out of shot.</p><p>
  <em>“You’ll have about twelve seconds before the room goes into phase with the invading matrix. I’ll send you the pass code when you get there. Good luck.”</em>
</p><p>The image vanished, and Will opened his eyes, shaking away his disorientation.</p><p>“What was that?” El inquired.</p><p>“It was that woman.” Will replied, knowing exactly where he and El needed to go now. “And the Doctor.”</p><p>“Dad?”</p><p>“Come on!” Will continued climbing. “We have to keep going!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“How’s he going to be able to take down the shields anyway!?” The Doctor yelled. “The Mind Flayer is probably centering itself <em>in </em>the control room!”</p><p>“I directed them to one of the old control rooms!” The TARDIS explained.</p><p>“There aren’t any old control rooms!” The Doctor refuted. “They were all deleted or remodeled!”</p><p>“I archived them!” The TARDIS replied. “For neatness! I’ve got about thirty now!”</p><p>“What!? But I’ve only changed the desktop about a dozen times!”</p><p>“So far, yes!”</p><p>“You can’t archive something that hasn’t happened yet!”</p><p><em>“You </em>can’t!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El and Will ran down the right junction, proceeding along their way to the control room.</p><p>El suddenly gasped, freezing, as the lights in the place went dead. “Will, the lights!”</p><p>Will looked around in confusion. “The lights are fine.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “It’s messing with our heads again.” He debated internally for a moment. It was probably a bad idea to split up, but… he needed to be sure the path ahead was clear for her, if she couldn’t see. “Stay here.” Will instructed, going just ahead. “Ah!” He yelped, hitting the ground.</p><p>“Will?”</p><p>“…it’s, it’s fine.” He replied. “I’m fine. Just… hit my head on one of the corners. Just follow my voice.”</p><p>El sighed, reaching her hands out to feel, as she slowly walked forward.</p><p>“Yeah, that’s it.” He encouraged. “Reach out your hand.”</p><p>El’s hand came into contact with something slimy, like a cluster of tentacles, and she froze.</p><p>Glowing red eyes pierced the darkness as the lights returned, and she screamed, scrambling away from Nephew.</p><p>“This way!” The real Will guided her. “Come on!”</p><p>----------</p><p>“Keep going!” The Doctor laughed, as he and the TARDIS worked together to pilot the junk console. “You’re doing it! You Sexy Thing!”</p><p>“See, you <em>do </em>call me that!” The TARDIS remarked. “Is it my name!?”</p><p>The Doctor laughed. “You <em>bet </em>it’s your name!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Okay, I can see,” El stated. “Will, I can see!”</p><p>“Alright, well, that was Nephew.” Will glanced back. “And he’s still coming!”</p><p>“So, where is this place?” El asked, as she and Will hit a dead-end.</p><p>“I don’t know.” Will replied. “This is where she said to go. She said she’d send me the pass code.” The moment those words left his mouth, he felt the same painful spike drive into his head.</p><p>
  <em>“Crimson. Eleven. Delight. Petrichor.”</em>
</p><p>“Crimson. Eleven. Delight. Petrichor.” Will blinked, opening his eyes.</p><p>“Petrichor?” El repeated, recalling the TARDIS’s earlier words.</p><p>“What, do I say it?” Will turned around to the wall, speaking. “Crimson. Eleven. Delight. Petrichor.”</p><p>El inhaled. “Petrichor. She said it meant the smell of dust after rain… Will, it’s the <em>meaning</em>.”</p><p>“What?” The boy questioned.</p><p>“The TARDIS is psychic. You don’t say it, you think it.” El explained, closing her eyes.</p><p>“El, Nephew-“ Will pointed.</p><p>“Shh.” She shushed him, repeating the mantra in her mind. “Crimson.” A red flag flapping in the wind. “Eleven.” Her own face, buzzcut and smiling. “Delight.” El erupting into laughter as the Doctor tripped over himself making a huge mess in the kitchen, before it descended into a full-on food fight. “The smell of dust after rain.”</p><p>The door hissed as it open, and El and Will sprinted inside.</p><p>They came into a stark, plain white control room. A hexagonal control console, which did not have the time rotor going all the way into the ceiling, stood in the center of the boxy, square room. Roundels ran up the wall through which they entered, and on the adjacent wall, while the other wall was smooth and featureless, with a set of doors, and the last wall, directly across from the door, was glass, with computer banks behind it.</p><p>The two had entered the First Doctor’s TARDIS control room.</p><p>“El?” El wondered, looking around, then at the massive light fixture on the roof of the room.</p><p>“Another control room, that woman said. Oh!” Will suddenly remembered, running over to the console. “Shields!”</p><p>He pulled the slider all the way back, the console humming deeply.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“They did it!” The TARDIS shouted, looking at the readouts.</p><p>The Doctor and the TARDIS held on, as their burning orb of energy crossed the vast, empty space, finally catching up to the blue box with the red windows and flashing red light.</p><p>-----------</p><p><strong><em>“How did you find this place?” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer questioned, as the cold white of the console room became that same sickly red-orange color. <strong><em>“It’s not on my internal schematics… I had hoped you two could join Nephew as my thralls, but you’ve been nothing but trouble.”</em></strong></p><p>The white roundels on the wall slid open, whirring, as Nephew walked in.</p><p><strong><em>“Nephew,” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer addressed, though it didn’t need to. <strong><em>“Kill them.”</em></strong></p><p>Nephew began to advance, as El’s hand shot out.</p><p><strong><em>“Don’t bother with your powers in here.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer taunted. <strong><em>“They won’t work.”</em></strong></p><p>“Augh!” Will felt the same spike drive into his head again.</p><p>
  <em>“We’re coming through! Get out of the way, or you’ll be atomized!”</em>
</p><p>“Where are you coming through?” Will replied.</p><p>
  <em>“I don’t know!”</em>
</p><p>“Oh, great!” Will sarcastically huffed, as the connection went out. “Thanks!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Junk TARDIS finally caught up to the Mind Flayer fully, rattling and sparking.</p><p>“It’s not going to hold!” The TARDIS shouted.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The archived console room began to shake and spark, as a swirling orange-gold sphere of energy began to coalesce…</p><p>Right on top of Nephew.</p><p>With the same metallic wheezing the TARDIS was known for, the Junk TARDIS solidified, the room calming as the swirling sphere of energy dispersed.</p><p>“Dad!”</p><p>“El!” The Doctor got up, as the TARDIS flopped down, running over to pull El into his arms.</p><p>“Oh, not good…” The TARDIS heaved, standing up. “Not good at all.”</p><p>The Doctor released El, moving quickly to help the TARDIS.</p><p>“How do you walk around in these things?” The TARDIS breathlessly wondered as the Doctor helped her sit properly.</p><p>“Well, we’re not quite there yet. Just… hold on.” The Doctor looked to the two teenagers. “El, Will, this is… well… she’s my TARDIS.”</p><p>Something sparked, and the Doctor jumped.</p><p>“Except she’s a woman.” The Time Lord continued. “She’s a woman, and she’s my TARDIS.”</p><p>El’s eyes bugged out, as she pointed at the woman. “<em>She’s </em>the TARDIS?”</p><p>The Doctor giddily laughed. “And she’s a woman! She’s a woman, and she’s the TARDIS!”</p><p>Will blinked, pointing. “Did you wish <em>really </em>hard?”</p><p>The Doctor blushed. “Shut up, not like that…”</p><p>“Hello,” The TARDIS stood up. “I’m… Sexy.”</p><p>“Oh,” The Doctor pointed at the two, as they struggled to hold back laughs. “Still shut up!”</p><p><strong><em>“The environment has been breached.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer rumbled, putting an end to all their fun. <strong><em>“Nephew, kill them all.”</em></strong></p><p>Will looked around, the Ood suddenly having vanished. “Where’d he go?”</p><p>“Where was he?” The Doctor inquired.</p><p>“He was standing right there.” El pointed to the Junk TARDIS.</p><p>“Ah, well, he must’ve been redistributed.”</p><p>El blinked. “…meaning?”</p><p>“You’re breathing him.”</p><p>Will wretched in disgust, rubbing his nose.</p><p>“Another Ood I failed to save.” The Doctor regretfully remarked.</p><p><strong><em>“Doctor,” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer addressed, <strong><em>“I was not expecting you.”</em></strong></p><p>“Well that’s me in a nutshell isn’t it?” The Doctor asked in response. “Lovely old unexpected me.”</p><p><strong><em>“The question is, now that you’re here, how to dispose of you?” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer wondered. <strong><em>“I could alter gravity-“ </em></strong>The inhabitants of the room fell, feeling themselves being crushed under their own weight.</p><p>The gravity suddenly returned to normal, and El ran over to the TARDIS.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“Or I could evacuate the air from this room and watch you choke.”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>The air whooshed as it was sucked out, the hands of all going to their throats.</p><p>“You really don’t want to do that!” The Doctor struggled to say over the roaring air.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“Why shouldn’t I just kill you now?”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>“Listen to your engines!” The Doctor retorted, as the air returned. “You don’t have the thrust to get back into my universe, and you know it! Right now I am your <em>only </em>hope of making it through the void safely into my universe, and mine’s the one where you wanna be!”</p><p>The TARDIS wheezed, whispering into El’s ear. “They weren’t trying to clone…”</p><p>“You can’t be serious.” Will looked to the Doctor.</p><p>“I am.” The Time Lord replied. “I am serious. I’m sure it’s an entity of its word.”</p><p>“He LIED to us!”</p><p>“Not really.” The Doctor replied. “He said we wouldn’t be harmed during our stay on its earth, and we weren’t harmed.”</p><p>“Dad,” El looked up from the TARDIS, “She’s burning up.”</p><p>The Doctor hurried over. “Hey. Hang in there, old girl.” The TARDIS deliriously smiled, looking back. “Not long now.”</p><p>“I always liked it when you called me old girl…” The TARDIS croaked, before she glanced at El, reaching her hand up. “My child… my beautiful child…”</p><p><strong><em>“You want me to give my word?” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer questioned, as El held onto the TARDIS’s hand. <strong><em>“Easy, I promise.”</em></strong></p><p>“Fine, okay,” The Doctor looked up, “I trust you. Just delete, oh, thirty percent of the TARDIS architecture. That’ll free up enough thrust to make it through. Activate subroutine sigma nine.”</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“Why would you tell me this?”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>“Because I want to get back to my universe as badly as you do.” The Doctor replied. “And I’m nice.”</p><p>
  <strong><em>“Yes… I can delete rooms. And I can also rid myself of vermin if I delete </em>this <em>room first.”</em></strong>
</p><p>El and Will looked around in fear, as the walls began to glow white. Not the lights, but the actual structure of the room itself.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“Thank you, Doctor, very helpful. Goodbye, Time Lord. Goodbye, little humans. Goodbye, Idris.”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>The light became blinding as every bit of component matter in the room was converted into energy.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Mind Flayer’s engines wheezed as it broke the barriers separating universes, materializing high in orbit above the Earth it had long targeted and failed to consume. Not anymore.</p><p>Suddenly, in the glowing red console room, four figures coalesced in flashes of light.</p><p>“Yes, I mean you <em>could </em>do that, but it just won’t work!” The Doctor punctuated, as El and Will looked around in confusion. “Hardwired fail-safe! Living beings in deleted sections are automatically deposited into the main control room, but thanks for the lift!”</p><p><strong><em>“We are in your universe now, Doctor, why should it matter to me in which room you die?” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer growled. <strong><em>“I can kill you just as easily here as anywhere. Fear me. I’ve killed hundreds of your kind.”</em></strong></p><p>“Fear <em>me.</em>” The Doctor growled back. “I killed them all.”</p><p>“I don’t understand.” El whispered to the TARDIS, who was whispering something to her. “They weren’t trying to clone who?”</p><p>“Yeah, you’re right, you’ve completely won!” The Doctor directed to the entity possessing his ship. “You can kill us in oodles of creative ways, but first, allow me and my very good friend Will to congratulate you on being an absolutely worthy opponent!” He clapped, pulling Will up.</p><p>The boy clapped in confusion. “Congratulations.”</p><p>“Yep, you’ve defeated me and my lovely friends here,” The Doctor granted, “And last, but definitely not least, the TARDIS matrix herself, a living consciousness you <em>RIPPED </em>out of this very control room,” He angrily gesticulated, “And locked into an organic body! And look at her!”</p><p>“Dad.” El looked up, worried. “She’s not breathing.”</p><p><strong><em>“Enough.” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer ordered. <strong><em>“That is enough.”</em></strong></p><p>“No!” The Doctor retorted. “It’s never enough. You forced the TARDIS into a living body so she’d burn out a very long way away from this control room! An organic body can’t hold a TARDIS matrix and <em>live!</em> Look at her body!”</p><p>
  <strong><em>“And… you think I should… </em>mourn <em>her?”</em></strong>
</p><p>“No…” The Doctor seethed. “I think you should be very, <em>very </em>careful about what you let back into this control room.”</p><p>The TARDIS’s eyes snapped back open, glowing gold, as she breathed out, the sound of the engines echoing out as a stream of golden particles radiated from her lips.</p><p>“You took her from her home.” The Doctor angrily said. “But now she’s back in the box again. And she’s <em>free</em>.”</p><p><strong><em>“No!” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer yelped as the energy from the TARDIS’s body formed into tendrils, striking the console. <strong><em>“Doctor, stop this!”</em></strong></p><p>“Look at my girl, look at her go!” The Doctor beamed. “Bigger on the inside!” He twirled. “Do you see!?”</p><p><strong><em>“Make her stop!” </em></strong>The Mind Flayer grunted in pain, as the slights in the console room began to slowly shift back to their normal color.</p><p>“That’s your problem!” The Doctor continued, as the Mind Flayer grunted in agony. “Superorganism covering an entire planet but on the inside you are just. So. Small!” He leaned on the console.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>“MAKE! IT! STOP!”</em>
  </strong>
</p><p>“Finish him off, girl.” The Doctor ordered.</p><p>The Mind Flayer’s pained sounds faded into nothing, as the console room went dark.</p><p>A new source of light began to shine, and El and Will looked over, as the TARDIS stood on the steps, glowing like an angel.</p><p>“Doctor?” The TARDIS spoke, echoing. “Are you there? It’s so very, very dark in here.”</p><p>The Time Lord turned around, slowly approaching the humanoid form of his ship as El and Will stood up. “I’m here.”</p><p>The TARDIS looked down to his eyes. “I’ve been looking for a word.  A big, complicated word, but so sad… I’ve found it now. Alive. I am alive.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled. “Alive isn’t sad.”</p><p>“It’s sad when it’s over.” The TARDIS returned.</p><p>The two teenagers, looking upon the scene, started to feel tears welling.</p><p>“I’ll always be here.” The TARDIS continued. “But this is when we talked… but even that has come to an end. There’s something I didn’t get to say to you.”</p><p>The Doctor looked down to the floor. “Goodbye.”</p><p>“No.” The TARDIS denied, tears welling in her eyes as well. “Hello. I just wanted to say hello. Hello Doctor. It’s so very, very nice to meet you.”</p><p>El couldn’t take it anymore. She ran over, throwing her arms around the TARDIS. “Mama…” She declared, bawling her eyes out. “My mama.”</p><p>The TARDIS smiled, tears falling fully as well. “El… my child… I am so very glad to be your mama.”</p><p>“Please…” The Doctor begged, gently placing his hand on El’s shoulder, while he took the TARDIS’s hand. “Don’t go…” His voice was choked, as his face became red and puffy.</p><p>The TARDIS took in a deep breath, as the engines thudded, the woman’s hand becoming immaterial as the metallic grinding echoed.</p><p>The TARDIS held her arms out as her body became nothing but light, bathing the console room in a glow like the sun.</p><p>“I love you…” The TARDIS whispered to the Doctor, as the console room returned to normal.</p><p>The Doctor sniffed, taking a breath, as El leaned into him for comfort.</p><p>The Time Lord turned, gently placing his hand on the console, closing his eyes.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor sat on the tiny swing on the lower level of the console room, wearing circular goggles, fiddling with the components. Something sparked, as El and Will came down from the upper level.</p><p>“How is she?” El blankly asked, long since done crying, but that was only because her body had run out of tears. If she could go on crying, she probably would be.</p><p>“Just putting a firewall around the matrix.” The Doctor answered, swinging back and forth. “Almost done.”</p><p>“Can you make her talk again?” Will inquired.</p><p>“Can’t.” The Doctor replied.</p><p>“How come?” Will asked.</p><p>“It’s spacey-wacey, isn’t it?” El tried to humorously ask.</p><p>“Well, actually, it’s because the Time Lords discovered if you take an eleven-dimensional matrix and fold it into a mechanical shell-“</p><p>Will absent-mindedly touched two wires together, both sparking.</p><p>“Augh, yes, it’s spacey-wacey!” The Doctor frustratedly shouted.</p><p>“Sorry…” Will apologized. “But… El can hear her anyway. How come?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged, standing up, wiping clean one of the wires. “Dunno. I’ve never really seen powers like El’s. Even among psychics she’s an anomaly.”</p><p>“Dad,” El began, coming down to sit on the steps, “At the end, she kept saying something… something about clones.”</p><p>“Exact words?” The Doctor requested.</p><p>“’They weren’t trying to clone…’” El relayed. “And that was it. I tried asking the TAR- mama, but she won’t say.”</p><p>“It probably only slipped out to begin with because being in such a tiny head was disorienting.” The Doctor hypothesized. “You’re not likely to get an answer outta her now. I wouldn’t worry about it.” He waved his hand noncommittally. Then, the Time Lord looked to Will, the boy unnervingly silent. “You okay?”</p><p>“The Mind Flayer…” Will began. “It sounded like it was in pain when the TARDIS kicked it out. Does that mean it’s gone for good?”</p><p>“…honest answer?” The Doctor replied. “Probably not. I have a feeling even though it pinned all its plans on being able to use the TARDIS to get back to our universe, it probably left part of itself behind to make sure it wouldn’t actually die if something went wrong. Probably rebuilding itself as we speak.”</p><p>Will sighed. “Great, it’s still alive, that’s just… great.”</p><p>“Hey,” The Doctor tapped him on the shoulder, “It might still be alive, but you know what? So are we. Being alive, best thing there is.” He flopped down back in the swing. “Two more minutes, then we’re off! The Eye of Orion’s restful, I think we could all use a good rest. Then again, I could never really get the hand of restful. What do you think, dear?” He said to the TARDIS. “Where should we take the kids this time?”</p><p>El smiled, looking on. “Look at you two. It’s always the two of you, isn’t it? The Doctor and the TARDIS, off to see the universe…”</p><p>“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” The Doctor turned. “But honestly, it’s the best thing there is.” He jumped in surprise as something sparked without his intervention. “The Mind Flayer deleted all the bedrooms. I should probably make you two new bedrooms. Up those stairs,” The Doctor pointed. “Keep walking till you find them, off you pop.”</p><p>El and Will got up, walking down one of the corridors.</p><p>It was just the Doctor and the TARDIS now.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor leaned on the console, looking up hopefully. “Are you there?” He asked, whispering.</p><p>No response came, other than the blinking lights on the controls.</p><p>“Course not,” The Doctor huffed, looking down. “Silly old… okay, the Eye of Orion or wherever it is we need to be.”</p><p>The space time throttle suddenly threw itself, as the engines engaged.</p><p>The Doctor looked around, smiling. Without El around to manipulate the controls mentally…</p><p>Meant it was the TARDIS herself responding.</p><p>“Ha ha!” The Doctor laughed, dashing around the controls madly. “Woo hoo!” He yelped cheerfully.</p><p>And, for just a second, the Doctor thought he could hear a ghostly voice laughing with him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0095"><h2>95. Bunk Beds Are Cool</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Wandering the TARDIS corridors so soon after the ship had been possessed by the Mind Flayer was unsettling, to say the least. El half expected to turn a corner and find another section that had been madly scribbled on, or worse, that everything since getting into the second control room was another trick, and it’d be right back to trying to outrun something that was the very place she was in.</p><p>Then again, poor Will… he definitely looked like he had it worse. Once the adrenaline faded and the two went searching for their respective rooms, he’d been jittery, jumping, becoming startled at every loud noise and shadow falling on the wall.</p><p>And the trek itself wasn’t helping matters. The TARDIS structure had never really made sense, corridors looping back on themselves, intersections that no matter which branch you walked down you’d end up at the same place regardless, and pathways that changed every time you took them.</p><p>Once it had just been a quirk of the TARDIS. Now it was a reminder of what had happened. Of the <em>thing </em>that had been trying to kill them slowly, in the cruelest way it could imagine, in El’s own home.</p><p>Eventually, though, they’d found the first room. Even though the door was blank, featureless, El <em>knew </em>it was hers, and the tiny psychic push from the TARDIS compelled her to open the door.</p><p>El looked inside and let out a relieved sigh. All her stuff was there. She was kinda worried that when the Mind Flayer had deleted the rooms, that meant the stuff inside was destroyed as well.</p><p><em>“Everything’s just atoms, in the end.” </em>The TARDIS explained. “<em>It’s only a matter of knowing how to put them together.”</em></p><p>El nodded her understanding of the concept and took a step inside. Everything was back in place; you couldn’t even tell that the ship had been possessed and hijacked. Well, everything was back as it was, except one thing.</p><p>Will’s eyebrows shot up as he looked in, never having gotten a look at the inside of the place, as he looked to the bed. “Is that a <em>king-size </em>bunk bed?”</p><p>El blinked, looking at it. That hadn’t been there before. “Yes.” She replied. “It is.”</p><p>“…right.” Will slowly nodded, taking a shaky breath. “Guess I’d better go find my room.”</p><p>El glanced at him as he turned to leave. It didn’t take a genius to see that he was getting squeamish about heading down the corridor by himself.</p><p><em>‘Do it!’ </em>Her subconscious damn near screamed. <em>‘You’ve been looking for a shot, you won’t get a better one than this!’</em></p><p>“Will.” El addressed aloud, kind of shyly. “Stay.”</p><p>The boy froze in confusion, turning around. “Huh?”</p><p>“…Stay.” El requested. “I don’t…” She swallowed. “I don’t wanna be alone.”</p><p>“B-But, I-“ Will stuttered. “I’m a-a-a boy, and you-“</p><p>El took a step forward, vehemently looking at him. “You don’t want to be alone either.” She recognized.</p><p>“A-Are you <em>reading </em>my mind!?”</p><p>El huffed. “No. You’ve been shaking like it’s cold since we started walking.”</p><p>“…that obvious, huh?” Will sighed, as El nodded. “Damnit,” He cursed, “I shouldn’t be like this. So scared I can’t even walk down a hallway. My da- Lonnie, was right, I am a pussy.”</p><p>“No,” El poked him in the sternum, “You’re human. Dad says it’s okay to be scared cause only stupid people don’t get scared when their life is in danger.”</p><p>Will bitterly chuckled. “I guess that means I’m the smartest person alive.”</p><p>El rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Will, stop. It’s okay.”</p><p>“It’s not okay…” Will replied shakily. “<em>Nothing </em>about anything that’s happened has been okay.”</p><p>“Fine then.” El granted. “But <em>don’t </em>get angry at yourself. It isn’t your fault.”</p><p>“…that doesn’t make it better.”</p><p>El sighed. “Top or bottom?”</p><p>“…<em>What?”</em></p><p>“Top,” She repeated, pointing to the top of the bunk bed, “Or bottom?” She pointed to the bottom bed.</p><p>“Oh, uh…” Will looked over. “Top. S-Sorry,” He stuttered, “I thought you meant something else.”</p><p>El frowned. “What?”</p><p>“Nothing.” Will quickly replied to prevent himself from being caught in an awkward conversation. “Top bunk, yeah.”</p><p>“Okay.” El nodded. She looked at him promptingly.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Turn <em>around.</em>” She ordered. They might’ve spent enough time together in that dream world to know the ins-and-outs of each other, but seeing as he didn’t remember, El’s recollection was only limited to when she <em>wanted </em>to remember, and the Doctor would <em>kill </em>one of them if he knew what was going on, El decided to be better off safe.</p><p>Besides, she was pushing her luck already. Better not give Will cause to shut down completely.</p><p>“Oh-“ The boy stuttered, quickly turning around. “Oh, sorry.”</p><p>El sighed and moved quickly. It wasn’t like she had a bathroom in here, the Doctor would understand.</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor huffed, rolling his eyes. “Did they already forget I said I could hear <em>everything </em>that happened in this TARDIS? That wasn’t hyperbole, I can <em>literally </em>hear everything that happens in here while I’m in here, regardless of distance.”</p><p>The little alien playing about at being a goldfish in a bowl blubbed.</p><p>“Shut it, you.”</p><p>The fish blew bubbles again.</p><p>“Fine, fine,” The Doctor shook his head, looking to his hand of cards. “Got any… sevens?”</p><p>The fish spluttered.</p><p>“Go fish.”</p><p>------------</p><p>El flopped down on the lower bunk, fluffing her pillow, as Will climbed to the top, slipping under the blankets.</p><p>“Hey…” Will quietly spoke, as the lights dimmed.</p><p>“Hm?” El returned.</p><p>“Do you ever wonder what things would be like?” Will asked. “If… all of it never happened?”</p><p>Even though Will didn’t <em>speak </em>exactly what he meant, El knew. He was talking about the gate, the Demogorgon, the Mind Flayer… while at the same time trying to stray away from any wording that might pin the blame on her.</p><p>“…I don’t know.” El returned after a moment of silent contemplation. It was easy for her to imagine that even without the escape her opening of the gate offered, the Doctor would’ve found her somehow, and rescued her.</p><p>Of course, the more <em>rational </em>part of her mind shut that down almost immediately. The Doctor intervened only because she found him, he wouldn’t go around doing so willy nilly, because if he started with seeking out one child in particular to rescue, where would it stop? Despite what some cultures across the universe painted him as, the Doctor was <em>not </em>a god, but a man.</p><p>A man with extraordinary capabilities, but still just one man.</p><p>In a way, she supposed it was fortunate. Because even though the contact between the Upside Down and Earth created nothing but hellish situations at the time, in an odd sort of way, it <em>did </em>lead to good as well.</p><p>Nancy and Jonathan getting together (the two thought they were slick, but literally <em>everyone </em>noticed it upon laying eyes on them), Steve going from douchebag to the coolest big-brother figure any of them could ask for, Hopper’s slow mellowing out…</p><p>And that wasn’t even mentioning the good that El did because of her finding the Doctor.</p><p>“Dad says life is a pile.” El began, absent-mindedly kicking her feet. “Of good things and bad things. He says good things don’t heal the bad but the bad don’t ruin the good… I think he left out another part, though. Bad things hurt for a while, but they can lead to good things.”</p><p>Will frowned skeptically, though he knew El couldn’t see him. “Huh?”</p><p>“Dad… he’s had a lot of bad happen to him.” El explained. “…but look at the kind of person it turned him into.”</p><p>“…I’m not the Doctor.” Will replied.</p><p>“You’re not.” El agreed. “That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to make the best out of something bad.”</p><p>“…I guess you’re right.” Will murmured after a moment’s consideration, before he yawned. “Goodnight, El.”</p><p>The girl quietly yawned, closing her eyes as well. “Goodnight.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>It was the later hours of the night when it happened. Well, technically speaking, it was four hours into El’s sleep cycle (no time on board a time machine), but at that point, it’s just arguing semantics.</p><p>The girl was startled awake by what sounded like a baby whimpering.</p><p>Her eyes snapped open. There weren’t any babies on the TARDIS, were there?</p><p>What was even more confusing though, the noise was coming from… above?</p><p>El inhaled as she realized what must’ve been happening. A cursory glance up top confirmed it.</p><p>Will was having a nightmare. One that he couldn’t wake up from if his fearful noises were any indication.</p><p>El scratched the back of her head, debating what to do. Didn’t that book she read about sleep say never to wake a person from a nightmare? Or was that sleepwalking?</p><p>Shaking her head and deciding to just <em>do </em>something about it instead of pontificate with herself through the night, El grabbed one of her pillows, her blanket, and climbed up top, setting up next to him.</p><p>She turned onto her side, and just gently reached out with her hand, touching his.</p><p>Instantly, Will reacted by going calm. Like, on some level, he knew she was there even though he was unaware of his surroundings.</p><p>El sighed to herself as she closed her eyes, allowing sleep to take her as well. The TARDIS normally chased off El’s nightmares, why wasn’t she doing the same for Will?</p><p>Maybe she couldn’t. Maybe the only reason the TARDIS could influence El’s dreams like that was because of El’s own abilities, and normal humans were left to weather the storm on their own.</p><p>Well, if the TARDIS couldn’t get rid of the nightmares for Will, El would have to.</p><p>Turning onto her side, El pressed her forehead to Will’s, and let sleep take her again, as whatever horrible dream he was experiencing slowly shifted to something more pleasant.</p><p>------------</p><p>Will’s eyes slowly creaked open, feeling warm air, like breath, against his face. He glanced around slowly, realizing that El was laying right across from him, on her side in a mirroring of his position, face totally serene.</p><p>He quietly sniffed. Even with everything that had happened, El still smelled like strawberries and coconut.</p><p>The boy momentarily wondered what El was doing. It took him a moment to figure, but he supposed he must’ve had another nightmare, not unexpected, so soon after another reappearance by the Mind Flayer, and not helped by the Doctor saying the entity most definitely survived back in its home dimension.</p><p>Then, Will wondered why El had chosen to climb up there with him, instead of waking him. Maybe she’d tried but he was too deep asleep.</p><p>He felt something grasping his hand and looked down.</p><p>Will mentally smacked himself. The next, and most likely explanation was that El, still pretty much uncaring about social boundaries, figured it’d be better to sleep <em>next </em>to him rather than on the bed under him, without worrying about the… implications.</p><p>Truth be told, though part of his brain, that ancient, instinctual part that he didn’t really keep in touch with, was at attention so to speak, the <em>other </em>part of his brain was just glad someone was there.</p><p>Will quietly huffed at that thought. In the span of about four months, El had gone from someone he’d only met once and heard about when Mike wasn’t around to get pissy talking bout her, to his best friend, just as important to him as Mike, Dustin, and Lucas had ever been.</p><p>Staying onboard the TARDIS, after those first few initial trips, had been… rocky. He was half worried he couldn’t trust either of them. But, while El <em>had </em>unwittingly tricked him into the TARDIS, and the Doctor was oftentimes just as untrustworthy as he was trustworthy, the next few trips had helped to create, and then cement a bond of friendship between Will and the others.</p><p>At first, he only kept quiet about his reluctance about being on the ship because he felt he owed El, but slowly that feeling of debt morphed into genuine longing to see what was out there.</p><p>Plus, there was some other part of him, something he really couldn’t identify, that felt being around El was just <em>right</em>. Like… two jigsaw pieces that had been separated their entire existence clicking together perfectly upon being brought together. Not soulmates. He doesn’t know what makes him say that with conviction, but he feels like it’s fact.</p><p>No, this is like… Well, truth be told, he couldn’t describe it. The closest thing he could think of was knowing somebody for so long that they became part of you, and you became part of them. Like best friends.</p><p>Then again, it could’ve just been par for the course on board the TARDIS. The Doctor, for example, was the sort of man Will always wished his father was. Fierce, loyal, protective, but strong enough to be kind and caring.</p><p>And El was the kind of girl Will pictured his dream girlfriend as. Tough, brave, funny and slightly nerdy, and always there when you needed help the most.</p><p>Hm, there was a thought.</p><p>El <em>did </em>say she loved him when she was pulled out of whatever horrible hallucination that the Mind Flayer had cooked up. Maybe it was worth a shot?</p><p>No, no. He didn’t want to ruin the good thing they had going by saying the wrong words. It was an intense situation, at best. It probably didn’t mean anything. Hell, when no one was around to shoot them looks, the Party pretty much said the same to each other verbatim after times of stress.</p><p>Will sighed quietly, and forced his eyes back shut.</p><p>Still, he pulled himself ever-so-slightly closer. No more nightmares for tonight, at least.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0096"><h2>96. The Dream World: First Day</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>El decided that, yes, school was something she wanted to pursue, and the Doctor couldn’t blame her. While the TARDIS’s information databanks covered all topics in far, far more detail than any human education system, El did need to get out at least a little bit.</p><p>So, there he was, enrolling her into school. The last time he did something like that was with Susan. At the time, the Doctor only allowed it out of the vain possibility that Susan would see that, no, human schools were <em>not </em>different to the Academy, and she’d still be an outcast and face the same ridicule that those in the Academy leveled at her.</p><p>But this time, the Doctor was genuinely concerned that El received the education and social development that she needed. And that meant, no matter how much he wanted to keep her within sight at all times, he had to put her in school.</p><p>Though it was fast approaching Christmas and winter break, the school did allow El’s sudden enrollment, if only due to some documents the Brigadier had given the Doctor and a lot of smooth talking. But, by the end of it, she was ready.</p><p>If a bit terrified.</p><p>The Doctor sat in Bessie, the two completely warm despite the car being totally exposed to the winter air, and turned to El. “Ready?”</p><p>The girl looked to the building apprehensively, then back to the Doctor. “…yes.” She said, not sounding quite up to the task.</p><p>“Hey, listen.” The Doctor tapped her supportively on the shoulder. “You’ve <em>got</em> this. You wanna know why I know? You’ve survived Daleks, the Weeping Angels, being almost swallowed by a Star Whale. You’ve faced down the most evil creatures in the universe, this-“ He gestured to the middle school, “Won’t be anything.”</p><p>“…Still scared.” El confessed.</p><p>“Ah, but scared’s good.” The Doctor replied. “Scared keeps you on your toes. You don’t have to be afraid of being afraid, it’s only human. And remember,” The Time Lord looked her in the eyes, “No matter how bad things look, no matter what, it can’t kill you.”</p><p>“Can’t kill me.” El repeated, nodding seriously.</p><p>“Right, so, what’re the rules again?”</p><p>El sighed. “No powers.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “At least, not in view of anybody else, unless someone’s life is <em>actually </em>in danger. Rule two?”</p><p>“Don’t talk about the TARDIS or aliens.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded again. “I don’t think anybody would take you seriously, but you are twelve, and I’ve found that ‘fantasies’ like that at such an old age draws only undue attention. If you <em>have </em>to talk about it, wrap it in a story. Three?”</p><p>“My name is El Smith.”</p><p>“Good. Four?”</p><p>“If something happens, call for you.”</p><p>“And how do you do that?”</p><p><em>“Like this.” </em>El answered in the Time Lord’s mind.</p><p>“Good… and five.”</p><p>El blinked. “There wasn’t a five.”</p><p>“There is now.” The Doctor replied seriously, before he smiled. “Have fun.”</p><p>El smiled. “I will.” She said, moving to exit.</p><p>“You have your schedule?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“And your lunch?”</p><p>“Yes!”</p><p>“And you remembered your supplies!?”</p><p>El huffed, rolling her eyes, shaking her TARDIS-blue backpack. “Yes, dad!”</p><p>“Alright. I’ll be back to pick you up at…” He checked his watch. “Three.” The Doctor gave her a quick kiss goodbye on the forehead. “Love you.”</p><p>El smiled. “Love you too, dad.” She turned, skipping off to the entrance.</p><p>The Doctor watched as she crossed the door threshold, and sighed, pulling away.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The blue single door of the TARDIS (‘<em>Which is wrong, wrong, wrong!’ </em>The Doctor thought to himself.) closed shut, the Time Lord crossing the console room. It was a battle and a half to get the TARDIS to acquiesce to changing the exterior, but when the Doctor pointed out that the police box shell was no longer needed as the hope-inspiring image it became in many cultures, the TARDIS had given in.</p><p>That didn’t mean the Doctor was necessarily <em>happy </em>about it. He liked the police box just as much as the TARDIS had. But… keeping cover was important, that meant a normal-looking house.</p><p>He was just glad she hadn’t changed the desktop theme as well. That might’ve been too much.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, flopping back in the chair, as he looked down at himself. What was he <em>doing </em>here? He’d never, never, ever done something like this before! The closest he’d ever come was the time he’d spent as John Smith in 1913, and even then, he’d hadn’t had to worry about a child back then. Three months.</p><p>Just three months as a human courtesy of a Chameleon Arch and then it was over. He could go back to being the swashbuckling hero of time and space.</p><p>No such luck this time. It was going to be a <em>lot </em>longer than three months. And even if it wasn’t, he couldn’t do that to El, Chameleon Arch himself to make it feel like it was proceeding faster than it actually was.</p><p>But… it was time to hang up his adventurer’s coat, he supposed. He wasn’t a spring chicken anymore, no matter how much he wanted to act otherwise. </p><p>The Doctor, in a huff, suddenly shot to his feet, storming off to the wardrobe. He needed to unwind.</p><p>But he wasn’t going to ruin his clothes in the process.</p><p>-----------</p><p>El slowly walked through the middle school, feeling eyes on her from all angles, the other children in the school reacting to her with surprise as she walked through the halls, shrinking in on herself.</p><p>This was a <em>BAD </em>idea.</p><p>El forced herself to calm down and take a breath as she walked to the first class of the day.  Peeking through the window, she’d found that the class had already begun. The moment she opened the door, all eyes would be on her.</p><p>Forcing herself to the task, she pushed the door open, and walked in. Like she feared, all eyes in that moment were upon her. She caught a faint gasp from Will, the boy evidently not having had expected her to show up in school so soon, while the other boys’ jaws dropped, the girls huffing in exasperation.</p><p>“Ah,” The man in the mustache with the green vest and tie turned to her. “You must be our new student!”</p><p>El said nothing, shyly nodding.</p><p>“Well, come on up!” Mister Clarke invited. ‘Dustin, drumroll please.”</p><p>A curly-haired boy at the front of the class wearing a baseball cap closed his textbook, drumming on it with his fingers.</p><p>“Class, please welcome,” Clarke began theatrically. “The latest passenger to join us on our curiosity voyage, all the way from across the pond in England… El!”</p><p>Nobody clapped, as El just gave an awkward wave.</p><p>“What is that short for?” Clarke politely inquired. “Elanor? Elnora? Elena? Ellen?”</p><p>El blinked. “Not short…” She shyly corrected. “Just… El.”</p><p>“Well then,” Clarke took it in stride, “All aboard, El.” He gestured for her to find somewhere to sit.</p><p>Looking around, near every desk in the place was occupied, save for an empty cluster around Will and his friends. Not feeling comfortable enough to take her place anywhere else, she sat down in the desk next to Will.</p><p>Somebody huffed from the back of the class. “Zombie Boy? Seriously?”</p><p>“Now, Troy,” Clarke reprimanded slightly, “That’s not very polite…”</p><p>“Yeah, whatever.” The boy huffed.</p><p>El shrunk into her seat some, as Clarke went to continue the lesson, still feeling some eyes on her. She turned to look.</p><p>Will and his friends were all staring at her.</p><p>That only made her shrink down more.</p><p>Still, she was glad. Even if it was someone she only <em>marginally </em>knew, there was still someone familiar in the class with her.</p><p>Maybe she was overreacting.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor walked into the TARDIS’s ‘wine cellar,’ wearing a different set of clothes. A grey track jacket, black sweatpants, sandals, and just a white t-shirt. Not his normal fare, but he wasn’t going to be caught <em>dead </em>ruining his nice clothes.</p><p>Striding over to a cabinet with purpose, he pulled it open, and pulled out the biggest bottle of ginger ale he could find. Why ginger ale?</p><p>Time Lords could not get drunk off of alcohol, their bodies metabolized it much more efficiently than humans. But that wasn’t to say they couldn’t get intoxicated at all. There existed many substances that could get a Time Lord totally sloshed.</p><p>Ginger, in case you needed it spelled out for you at this point, was one of those substances.</p><p>Going to the sitting room, and disregarding the TARDIS’s aura of disapproval, the Doctor flopped down on the couch, and tuned the television to one of the programs filling the airwaves.</p><p>
  <em>“It’s a beautiful day in this neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor.”</em>
</p><p>The Doctor smiled fondly, taking a swig. “Good to see you getting some mileage out of my old tie, Fred.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>Something quickly became apparent to El as the day continued. <em>All </em>of the classes she had were also ones Will had. Sometimes his friends were in there too, but it was always her and Will at least.</p><p>El wasn’t stupid. While Will just thought it a funny coincidence, El took it for exactly what it was. A deliberate situational engineering on the Doctor’s part.</p><p>She wasn’t sure how he got Will’s scheduling information, but El <em>knew </em>the Doctor had something to do with their schedules being so synchronized.</p><p>She didn’t know whether to be grateful or ticked off. Because, on the one hand, it meant that there was someone she did already know slightly helping her along the way. She and Will weren’t close at all, but that little bit of familiarity did help to ease her into the new routine better.</p><p>And then, on the other hand, there was the fact that the Doctor placed her in classes with someone that meant that, if anything went down, word would make it back to the Time Lord through the grapevine. Like the Doctor didn’t trust her enough on her own to the point where he had to put unwitting surveillance on her.</p><p>Come to think of it… El glanced around. The TARDIS scanner didn’t need cameras to show an image. The Doctor was probably keeping an eye on her right now.</p><p>------------</p><p>“NO, DORA, THAT’S SWIPER FOR GOD’S SAKE!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>El shook her head, forcing the thought out. She couldn’t let herself be that paranoid. The Doctor would be worried, but he’d never invade her privacy like that. She glanced at the clock. Three more hours left in the school day. She could make it.</p><p>But first, lunch.</p><p>She looked around the cafeteria warily, trying to find somewhere to sit. Soon enough, she spotted Will, the boy waving her over as his friends turned to look.</p><p>Odd. He and the other three seemed to be separated from the others in the school quite a bit. The desks this morning, now the table… she’d have to ask why. The girl sat down, taking the container the Doctor had prepared for her, and popped the lid off, the others all looking at her.</p><p>“…what?” El asked.</p><p>“You, uh…” One of them stuttered.</p><p>Will sighed. “El, this is Mike, Lucas, and Dustin.”</p><p>The girl waved just slightly. “Hello.”</p><p>“So, El,” Will began diplomatically, “How’s your first day going so far?”</p><p>“Good.” The girl smiled, poking at her food.</p><p>Lucas frowned, looking at the concoction the Doctor had provided. “What <em>is </em>that?”</p><p>“It’s, um, it’s…” El sniffed it. “It’s green.”</p><p>“I think it looks good.” Mike cut in.</p><p>Will rolled his eyes, as El went to go for a bite.</p><p>“Hey,” The same antagonistic boy from Clarke’s class suddenly appeared. “Why are you sitting with these losers?”</p><p>It took El a moment to register the statement was directed to her, but once she did, she scowled. “Losers?”</p><p>“Yeah, losers.” Troy repeated.</p><p>“…Not sitting with <em>you</em>.” El decided, turning back to her food.</p><p>“Nah, come on.” Troy tried to move closer to her, “I’ll show you a better time than these yahoos.”</p><p>Will’s hand shot out before he even realized what he was doing. “Ah.” He blinked, as the part of his brain dedicated to self-preservation started going: <em>‘IDIOT! You’ve killed us!’</em></p><p>Troy seethed with rage. “Did you just fucking touch me?”</p><p>Will looked to the others. Mike looked mortified, Lucas tried to focus his attention anywhere else, Dustin looked like he was about to piss himself from fear, and El looked like she was wondering just what the hell Troy’s deal.</p><p>As he looked to all his friends, and his acquaintance, something within Will snapped in that moment.</p><p>He’d survived being hunted by a monster in a godforsaken hell dimension. Troy didn’t scare him anymore.</p><p>Will stood up, despite being as small as he was compared to the others and stood his ground. “Yeah.” He quietly stated nodding. “Yeah!” He repeated with resolve.</p><p>Troy looked like he was about to absolutely destroy Will, before the wind in his fury died down.</p><p>“Whatever.” Troy huffed, turning to walk away. “If the retard’s got a boyfriend, let her keep him.”</p><p>El blinked in confusion.</p><p>“Holy. Shit.” Dustin breathed. “Dude!” He turned to Will.</p><p>“We’re dead.” Mike muttered. “We’re dead.”</p><p>El frowned. “What did he call me?”</p><p>Lucas flinched. “Something… not nice.”</p><p>El frowned, glaring across the cafeteria at Troy, the boy suddenly tripping and falling, before El went back to eating nonchalantly.</p><p>Will’s eyes widened, the only one to see the sight, as he looked between Troy and El, making the mental connection. “Did you…?”</p><p>“Did what?” El asked in response.</p><p>Will’s eyebrows furrowed in slight suspicion, but he brushed it off, sitting back down to continue eating as well.</p><p>El looked around at the other four, as an odd mood of fear mixed with jubilation filled the air.</p><p>These guys weren’t too bad, she supposed.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes snapped open, glancing frantically around the TARDIS sitting room.</p><p>
  <em>“Hey, Patrick, what am I now?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Uh… stupid?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“No, I’m Texas!”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“What’s the difference!?”</em>
</p><p>His eyes landed on the clock, and he gulped. “Two-forty-five.” He broke into a sprint, not even bothering to change out of his clothes, as he ran through the corridors of the TARDIS, towards the exit.</p><p>He’d be okay to drive. He’d sweated out the intoxicants during his accidental nap, he could feel it.</p><p>The Doctor tripped over himself as he reached the door, before pulling himself up, running out to Bessie.</p><p>The TARDIS let out an exasperated telepathic sigh, watching as the Doctor drove off at breakneck speed.</p><p>The idiot was hopeless.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The brakes on the car squealed as he stopped in front of the middle school. 3 o’clock, on the dot. He watched the doors, waiting patiently, as El came out, along with a group of four boys.</p><p>The Doctor could see El say something to Will and the others before she started closing the distance, climbing into the seat next to the Doctor.</p><p>El frowned, looking the Time Lord. “You look… different.”</p><p>The Doctor looked down at himself. “It’s camouflage.” He replied, looking back at her. “Figure I’d blend in better in this rather than the usual clothes.” He explained, setting Bessie into gear as they pulled away from the school, El looking to the group of friends standing at the front all the while. “You have a good day at school?”</p><p>“…Yes.” El replied. “Mostly.”</p><p>The Doctor raised a concerned eyebrow. “Mostly?”</p><p>“Troy called me a… bad thing.” El explained, frowning. “Still don’t know what it means.”</p><p>The Doctor looked at her. “Why’d he do that?”</p><p>“I don’t know.” El confessed. “Mike, Will’s friend, said it was because I took longer to answer and didn’t talk a lot.”</p><p>“Ah.” The Doctor nodded in understanding. “I see. I wouldn’t let it get you down, though. I used to get called names in school too.”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Really?”</p><p>“Yeah.” The Doctor confirmed. “The kids at my school all called me snail, and wormhole.”</p><p>El laughed slightly. “Wormhole?”</p><p>“Unfortunately.” The Doctor shrugged. “I was the only kid born in a thousand years to have a bellybutton.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>The Time Lord shrugged again. “Birth defect. But, you see, I didn’t let it get me down, and do you know why?”</p><p>“How come?”</p><p>“Whatever pain their words caused me, it was only temporary.” The Doctor said, glancing at her. “That’s all pain is. It doesn’t last forever, not really. And, look at it this way. If someone chooses to pick on you, that means they’re devoting their time to you, so, who really wins in the end, eh?”</p><p>El nodded. “Thanks. It didn’t really bother me though. Just… confused. What did I do to deserve it?”</p><p>The Doctor sighed. “That’s the problem with people taking out their frustrations on others. The targets really <em>don’t </em>deserve it.” He shook his head. “But, just remember, it’s all temporary, and you <em>don’t </em>have to put up with it.”</p><p>“Right.” El nodded in comprehension.</p><p>“Now,” He glanced at her, turning a corner. “I saw you standing outside with Will and a few others. Did you make some new friends?”</p><p>El smiled. “Yes.”</p><p>“That’s my girl.”</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0097"><h2>97. The Dream World: Funiculi Funicula</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>To be honest, the whole thing had <em>‘Not going to last’ </em>written all over it.</p><p>A week. A <em>week </em>in the godforsaken town in the middle of absolute nowhere. A week with no adventures, doing domestic things, watching as the seconds ticked by ever closer to the heat death of reality.</p><p>The Doctor, in case you couldn’t tell, was decidedly <em>not </em>in a good place at the moment. Most, even those who knew him, weren’t sure if he was just energetic or had some Time Lord form of ADHD. Even the Doctor himself was uncertain if it was a genuine condition on his part or an act he put on so he’d have an excuse not to stay put too long before his nine-hundred years of life caught up with him and he started thinking about all the things he had done that made the universe a worse place.</p><p>It doesn’t matter, because either way, it was killing him. The Doctor loved El, don’t get him wrong. He’d started counting himself as her dad the moment he’d taken her on board the TARDIS, and he’d move sky and earth to make her happy, the current situation he put himself in only serving as proof.</p><p>Their daily routine normally went along the lines of this; The Doctor would wake up, cooking breakfast, while he waited for El to wake up courtesy of her alarm. They’d eat, maybe accidentally start a foodfight which would necessitate a quick change of clothes, and then it’d be off to school. When she’d get home, he’d ‘help’ her with her homework (the TARDIS really disapproved, but the Doctor was normally so anxious to have some fun, he’d actually wound up <em>doing </em>El’s homework for her so they could get to the good stuff fast enough), then it was supper, bath time, and bed time, with the two normally playing video games, or running around in one of the TARDIS’s rooms trying to occupy themselves.</p><p>But during the day, when El was gone and it was just the Doctor?</p><p>It was hell. It was absolute <em>hell</em>.</p><p>El might’ve gotten an inkling that something was wrong, but the only indication that the Doctor gave her (and even then it was unintentional) was the fact that he seemed to permanently swap out his normal clothes for that hideous sweatpants-hoodie-combo-thing with the atrocious sandals, the stubble now growing on his face that would normally be clean-shaven, and the persistent smell of ginger ale that tainted the air wherever he walked.</p><p>Make no mistake, the Doctor was always clear-headed and sober when El was around, <em>ALWAYS, </em>but when she was gone…</p><p>He had to make it stop. The tick, <em>tick, TICKETING </em>of the milliseconds going by. Each day was stretched out to an eternity. Make no mistake, this was no ordinary boredom. It was an eternity of boredom that not even the TARDIS could cure. An eternity of boredom where the normal things that the Doctor did to take his mind off the atrocities he’d committed in the past were gone, leaving only the capability for him to think and to stir in his regret.</p><p>Still, he soldiered through it. He had to. For El.</p><p>----------</p><p>Friday came around, and the Doctor was practically bouncing off the wall. El’d be home for the whole <em>weekend, </em>then all he had to do was make it through another week, and then it’d be Christmas break! He already had plans about what they would do.</p><p>It was supposed to snow soon, real, actual snow, instead of the artificial stuff inside the snow room. So, snow day was definitely one of the things on the itinerary, not to mention El’s first Christmas, and then New Year’s. Oh boy, it was gonna be fun.</p><p>But first, he had to pick up El.</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor sat in Bessie, waiting for school to let out. A few moments passed, and he could distantly hear the bell ring, before the doors opened and a tsunami of teenagers came out. It took about five minutes, but eventually he could see El and the small group of friends she’d attached herself to exiting.</p><p>The Doctor smiled slightly. El was doing good.</p><p>She broke off from the group after a few seconds and approached Bessie, sighing, before she frustratedly slammed down in the seat next to the Doctor, tossing her backpack into the back.</p><p>The Doctor blinked. El usually never acted like that. “…You okay?”</p><p>El crossed her arms, scowling. “Troy’s a dickhead.”</p><p>The Doctor coughed in surprise, eyes widening. “Where’d you learn <em>that</em>!?”</p><p>“Dustin.” El honestly answered. “He said when someone is ‘dick-head’ it means they are big jerks.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. “Still, that’s not nice language!” The Time Lord replied, sighing. “So, other than that, did you have a good day?”</p><p>El nodded, stopping. “There’s a project we have to do by Christmas break.”</p><p>“A project?”</p><p>El nodded again. “Yes. A little project, but we have to do it in a group.”</p><p>“Group project, oh, I loved them.” The Doctor absent-mindedly giggled. “Well, mainly just because it was an excuse for me to slack off while work got done. Who’re you doing it with?”</p><p>“Will.” El answered. “And his friends. They wanna do it at Mike’s.”</p><p>“Mike’s?”</p><p>“Yeah. He lives right down the road from us.” El replied.</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Okay.”</p><p>“…so…”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “So what?”</p><p>“Can I go over there?” El asked.</p><p>The Doctor looked slightly hurt. “You don’t want to come back home?”</p><p>“We need to work on the project.” El answered.</p><p>“…right, yeah, okay.” The Doctor allowed after a moment.</p><p>El frowned, looking inquisitively at the Doctor. “Are you okay?”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” The Doctor smiled. “You go spend time with your new friends. It’s good to get outta the house every now and then.”</p><p>“Will you… be fine?” El asked, slightly worried about him.</p><p>“I’ll be dandy.” The Doctor replied. “Did you plan on staying the night?”</p><p>“…stay the night?”</p><p>“You know, sleep over at Mike’s house.”</p><p>The girl nodded slowly.</p><p>The Doctor felt pain stab at him again, but he didn’t let it show. “You go and have fun with your friends, don’t worry about me. Your old man can handle being on his own for a day or two.”</p><p>El looked skeptical but nodded after a moment. “Okay.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Alright, you got everything?” The Doctor asked of El.</p><p>The girl nodded, holding up her backpack cleared of most of the school items except for the stuff she’d need. “Got it.”</p><p>“Right, rules.” The Doctor laid out. “The TARDIS is right down the road, so when you’re ready to come home, just walk, <em>unless </em>it’s the middle of the night, in that case, send for me.”</p><p>“Okay.” El noted.</p><p>The Doctor raised his fist, knocking on the door of Mike’s house, waiting for a moment, before a slightly older blonde woman answered the door, stopping in her tracks.</p><p>“…hello.” The woman breathed, looking the Doctor up and down.</p><p>“H-H-Hello!” The Doctor returned, feeling <em>exactly </em>where the woman’s eyes were drifting. Maybe the stubble was starting to make him look paradoxically old, but young enough to be desirable, who knows? “I’m the Doctor, this is El.”</p><p>“Karen.” The woman smiled slightly in return. “Michael said a new friend from school would be stopping by.”</p><p>“Michael? Who’s Michael? I don’t know a Michael.” The Time Lord nervously rambled.</p><p>El huffed and rolled her eyes. “<em>Mike, </em>dad.”</p><p>“Mike is short for Michael? Who knew?” The Time Lord replied. “Then again, bike <em>is </em>short for bichael, so maybe I should’ve known.”</p><p>El sighed, shaking her head. “Can I come in?”</p><p>“Sure, Mike’s usually down in the basement.” Karen looked to the Doctor. “Maybe you’d like to come in too… I love getting to know new people.”</p><p>
  <em>‘RED ALERT! RED ALERT! Okay, Doctor, it’s happening, we’ve trained for this!’</em>
</p><p>“Oh, no thank you, I’ve got so much to do.” The Doctor blushed, slowly stepping back as El entered the house. “Yeah, gotta… reorganize some shelves. Do some maintenance… polish the… shoes… yeah, would love to stay, but busy busy bee, that’s me!” He awkwardly chuckled, waving goodbye to El as he ran back to the car.</p><p><em>‘God… that was a </em>close <em>one.’</em></p><p>-------------</p><p>“Activity, activity, need some activity to pass the time.” The Time Lord paced up and down the corridors of the TARDIS. “What to do, what to do…” He snapped his fingers. “I know! Cooking! I haven’t properly tested the cooking skills in this body yet, time to put it through its paces!”</p><p>----------</p><p>El gingerly walked down the steps into the basement of Mike’s house, hearing voices arguing loudly as she approached.</p><p>“No, dinosaurs were reptiles, they’ve gotta be cold blooded!” Lucas insisted.</p><p>“No, <em>you </em>listen and you listen good!” Mike retorted, gesturing with his finger pointed for emphasis. “<em>Birds </em>are closer relatives to dinosaurs than lizards! They’re warm blooded!”</p><p>“If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times,” Lucas returned, he and Mike so deep into the argument that the only ones who registered El’s arrival were Will and Dustin, who exasperatedly waved her in. “That doesn’t mean jack shit! Spiders and scorpions are both arachnids, does that mean <em>they’re </em>the same?”</p><p>“<em>No,” </em>Mike replied through gritted teeth, “But pterodactyls could <em>fly, </em>and birds can only fly because of feathers, so pterodactyls have to have had feathers, so dinosaurs are birds which means they’re <em>WARM BLOODED!”</em></p><p>El blinked in confusion. “What are they fighting about?”</p><p>“The project.” Will let out a suffering sigh. “We’re doing it on the evolution of the dinosaurs and those two have been arguing for the past hour about dinosaurs being warm or cold blooded.”</p><p>“Oh… are they stupid?” El inquired.</p><p>Dustin spluttered, laughing. “Yeah, but I don’t think that’s the problem!”</p><p>El frowned. “Blood is blood. They’d be warm blood or cold blood if they lived in a hot or cold place, right?”</p><p>Will smiled but shook his head. “No, that’s not what that means. It means whether or not their bodies make their own heat, like people, or if they need to get it from outside.”</p><p>El’s lips parted in an ‘o’ as she nodded in new understanding. “We could ask my dad?” She suggested.</p><p>“Your dad?” Lucas turned to her. “Your dad knows about dinosaurs?”</p><p>El nodded. “He knows a lot of smart things.”</p><p>Mike raised an eyebrow. “Who is he?”</p><p>“He’s the Doctor.”</p><p>The others, excluding Will who’d had encountered the Time Lord if only briefly, blinked. “A doctor?”</p><p>“No, he’s <em>the </em>Doctor.” El replied. “Let me… call him.” She made a show of walking over to the wall, miming punching in numbers into the phone, before she removed the handset, holding it to her ear. “Hello, dad?” She spoke while actually sending her query telepathically. “Were the… dinosaurs warm or cold blooded?”</p><p><em>“Really?” </em>The Doctor huffed. <em>“You called me for </em>that<em>? Oh, never mind, if you must know, the answer is… warm, definitely warm, I think.”</em></p><p>El smiled. “Thanks.” She placed the phone back.</p><p><em>“Don’t mention it.” </em>The Doctor returned. <em>“But next time at least wait twenty minutes before you call up with questions.”</em></p><p>El rolled her eyes.</p><p>Will blinked. “What was that?”</p><p>El raised an eyebrow. “What was what?”</p><p>“You just rolled your eyes.” Mike pointed out.</p><p>“Huh? No… no I didn’t.” El denied, sitting down. “Project. They’re warm blood, by the way.”</p><p>The others sighed but moved to join her.</p><p>“Oh, by the way,” Mike turned to Lucas, “HA!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“Okay, foodstuffs, foodstuffs, foodstuffs…” The Doctor repeatedly muttered, practically tearing apart the kitchen cabinets for whatever he could find. Cooking was a good way to occupy the time, like an arts and crafts project, and you got to eat it afterward! How could the Doctor <em>not </em>like cooking?</p><p>First, the Time Lord grabbed a packet of dry yeast out of the cabinet, pouring it into a bowl of water with some sugar, and stirred it well, covering it to let it go on its own. While he waited, he got some flour, some salt, a little bit of sugar, some olive oil…</p><p>“Aissera, oje Nanniné, me ne sagliette, tu saje addó. Tu saje addó.” The Doctor sang to himself as he poured the flour into the yeast, mixing it with an electric mixer.</p><p>Once it was nice and mixed into a ball, the Doctor switched the paddle out for a hook, and set the machine to work again.</p><p>“Addó 'stu core 'ngrato cchiù dispietto, farme nun pò! Farme nun pò!” The Time Lord continued singing, watching the dough be kneaded. Once it was done, he took the dough out, rolling it into a ball before putting it back into the bowl to be covered.</p><p>“Addó lu fuoco coce, ma se fuje, te lassa sta! Te lassa sta!” The Doctor did a little jig as he walked over to the refrigerator.</p><p>“E nun te corre appriesso, nun te struje, sulo a guardà. Sulo a guardà.” He hummed, as he set the dough in a safe place, before he closed the door and turned a dial on the fridge’s side, fast-forwarding time within.</p><p>“Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà, Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà, 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà!” The Doctor sang as he rolled the dough, tossing it high into the air.</p><p>The TARDIS, though she obviously couldn’t join in on the cooking process itself, jumped in by providing an actual backing track to the Doctor’s singing.</p><p>“Se n' 'è sagliuta, oì Nè, se n' 'è sagliuta, la capa già! La capa già! È gghiuta, pò è turnata, pò è venuta, sta sempe ccà! Sta sempe ccà!” The Time Lord bobbed, dancing around the dough as he gently brushed it with olive oil.</p><p>The Doctor ran to grab a jar of red tomato sauce, dribbling some out onto the dough, before spreading it out evenly with a ladle.</p><p>“La capa vota, vota, attuorno, attuorno, attuorno a tte. Attuorno a tte!” The Doctor continued, getting excited as he licked the excess off the ladle.</p><p>He dusted off his hands as he ran over, grabbing some herbs and just a little bit of pepper out of the cupboards.</p><p> Now, before we continue, I want you to remember that Time Lords are much, much more resilient to intoxicating or mind-altering substances of all kinds, unless its ginger. Nobody knows why ginger, but-</p><p>Wait where was I? Oh, right.</p><p>“Sto core canta sempe, nu taluorno, Sposamme, oì Nè. Sposamme, oì Nè! The Doctor walked over to a cabinet normally concealed by a perception filter so the humans on board wouldn’t notice it was there, and removed the padlock, pulling out a small jar of very-finely ground, cannabis.</p><p>Again, the Doctor wasn’t human. He couldn’t get high from it, as far as he was concerned, it was just a pleasant-tasting herb that he thought went well with oregano. Speaking of which…</p><p>“Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà. Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà, 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà!” The Doctor sprinkled out the mixed herbs onto the sauce.</p><p>Now, came the fun bit.</p><p>The Doctor hopped back over to the fridge, grabbing some bags of cheese, a pack of pepperoni, and some sausage.</p><p>He jumped back over, mixing the cheeses, before haphazardly tossing them onto the dough. The Time Lord danced around, throwing the stuff over his shouder, all of it somehow landing perfectly on target.</p><p>“Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà. Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà, 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà!” The Doctor discarded the rest of the cheese, before going to the other toppings.</p><p>The Time Lord threw the pepperoni and sausage right on to it, before picking up the peel by the handle. He danced over to the oven, already hot and ready to go, and pulled it open.</p><p>“Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà, 'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, FUNICULÀAAAAAAAAAA!” The Doctor finished, sliding the pizza onto the stone, before slamming the oven shut, setting the peel aside.</p><p>The Time Lord checked his watch. “Ten minutes. I can wait for ten minutes.”</p><p>--------------</p><p>“So,” Mike looked to El, as he and her worked together on designing the layout of the board. “Your dad’s a Doctor.”</p><p><em>“The </em>Doctor.” El corrected again.</p><p>Mike blinked. “Yeah, but, Doctor Who?”</p><p>El shrugged. “Just the Doctor.”</p><p>Dustin snorted from across the room. “<em>Just </em>the Doctor? Seriously?”</p><p>El nodded.</p><p>“So what you’re saying is,” Lucas began, looking to her skeptically, “Your dad doesn’t have a name, he has a title.”</p><p>El huffed. “Of course he has a name. He just doesn’t give it out to people. I don’t think <em>anybody </em>knows it.”</p><p>Will blinked. “Wait, does that mean when he introduced himself to my mom as ‘Doctor John Smith,’ he was using an <em>alias</em>?”</p><p>El tilted her head. “A-what?”</p><p>“A fake name.” Will elaborated.</p><p>El nodded, not quite picking up on how the answer only made him feel worse.</p><p>A strange man with seemingly intimate knowledge of the dimension that Will had gotten stuck in, introducing himself with a false name? This ‘Doctor’ could be any number of things.</p><p>“Dad says he uses it because it’s common.” El innocently explained, gluing a piece of blue construction paper to the carboard to make the color stand out from the rest. “Makes it so people don’t notice him.”</p><p>Dustin blinked, looking to the others. ‘Russian?’ He anxiously mouthed.</p><p>‘No!’ Mike mouthed back. ‘Where the hell did you get that idea!?’</p><p>‘Screw it, I’m asking her!’ Dustin mouthed back. “Hey, um, El,” He spoke aloud, turning to the girl. Does your… dad speak Russian by any chance?”</p><p>El looked to Dustin and shrugged. “I do. I don’t know if he does. But,” She turned back to the project, either unaware or uncaring that her words seemed to make the rest of them worried. “He speaks everything.”</p><p>“Everything?” Lucas probed. “Like what?”</p><p>El threw up her hands. “Everything. He knows how to talk to everyone.”</p><p>The four looked at each other anxiously.</p><p>“Mike.” Dustin addressed, “Can you show me how to work the tap in your bathroom?”</p><p>Mike scowled in confusion. “It’s a <em>tap</em>.”</p><p>“Just shut up and come to the bathroom with me!” Dustin ordered, dragging him in.</p><p>El blinked, turning to Will and Lucas. “Dad says people aren’t supposed to use the bathroom together. Why are they?”</p><p>“Dude, we have to get her out of there!” Dustin shouted, plainly audible through the door.</p><p>El turned to the other two. Lucas sighed, rubbing his face, as Will shook his head.</p><p>“No, I’m not going to calm down!” Dustin shot back. “She and her dad could be spies! <em>Russian </em>spies!”</p><p>“Oh my God…” Will muttered, putting his face in his hands too.</p><p>A few moments passed as Mike evidentially got through to Dustin the fact that those outside could probably hear, and the next minute or so passed in silence as the two emerged, going to sit down like nothing had happened.</p><p>El huffed, rolling her eyes. “My dad’s <em>British</em>.”</p><p>“Oh, British,” Dustin nodded, “Okay, yeah, that explains it.”</p><p>Mike looked to Dustin in exasperation. “Seriously?”</p><p>“What?” Dustin shrugged. “Brits are weird.”</p><p>“Yeah.” Mike agreed.</p><p>“Okay.” Lucas nodded.</p><p>“That makes sense.” Will concurred.</p><p>El giggled slightly. “Yeah. Dad’s a weirdo.”</p><p>------------</p><p> </p><p>The oven beeped, the delicious aroma drifting gently through the air as the Doctor removed his food.</p><p>“Oho…” The Time Lord excitedly rubbed his hands together. “Pizza time.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0098"><h2>98. The Dream World: An Awkward Situation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor tries everything he can to keep himself busy during the days that El is at school. Everything he can muster from go-karting down the obstacle-ridden corridors, or bungee-jumping off the edge of the internal architecture, he tries.</p><p>All start to dry up. The problem with being someone who gets bored and experiences time compressed to a ridiculous degree, everything starts to become boring sooner or later. Used to be, he’d just pop off on a trip, now…</p><p>He’s deliberately throwing himself into reckless behavior to keep the mind-thinking away. Then again, that wasn’t <em>too </em>different than before, only now it’s reckless behavior locked in the TARDIS. He checked his watch.</p><p>Already, he was planning a trip or two around. Not trips in the TARDIS but trips around the native time zone to the tourist destinations of Earth.</p><p>Of course, he has to make it through Christmas first. And not get so excited about it he’d wind up accidentally cramming them all together.</p><p>He can last, he thinks. It’s not that big a deal.</p><p>-------------</p><p>All that changed when, one night, on a Wednesday or a Sunday or something similarly boring during the break, El had come home early from Will’s.</p><p>He’s glad to see she’s back of course, but there is the elephant in the room of ‘El not having supposed to be back until <em>tomorrow</em>.’ In fact, the Doctor was <em>so </em>confident that she wouldn’t be back until then, that he’d already gone and gotten himself utterly blackout wasted, a state that would last until the next morning.</p><p>So, of course, El decided that would be the one time she came home early.</p><p>The girl grunted slightly, as she shut the door. “Dad?” She called. When no response came, she did it again. “Dad?”</p><p><em>‘Your father is… indisposed.’ </em>The TARDIS replied with a sigh.</p><p>“Well, where is he?” El inquired. “I need to talk to him. Now.”</p><p>The TARDIS sighed again, but acquiesced, lighting up sections of the corridors for El to follow.</p><p>El nodded gratefully and walked up, following the lights.</p><p>------------</p><p>Eventually, El came to the sitting room, and entered. Immediately, her nose was assaulted by the smell of ginger beer, so strong it practically replaced the normal smell of the TARDIS.</p><p>El’s eyebrows knit together in confusion, as she walked around, eyes falling on the Doctor, who was asleep on the couch in that damn hobo outfit of his.</p><p>El was concerned. She’d <em>never </em>seen the Doctor sleep, ever, not a nap, not a quick rest of the eyelids, nothing. Truthfully speaking, El didn’t even believe the Doctor slept at <em>all, </em>she wasn’t even sure his bedroom was an actual bedroom and not something else entirely.</p><p>So, seeing the Doctor clocked out on the couch, an arm and a leg limply hanging off the side, while his head rested on one of the sofa’s arms, was very concerning. It was like… if it was always daytime, but then it suddenly became night, and no one had any idea what was happening.</p><p>So, El pushed aside her own concern for herself, and approached the Doctor.</p><p>“Dad…” El poked him in the cheek, rough stubble giving slightly under her touch. “Dad?”</p><p>The Doctor smacked his lips lightly.</p><p>Good, he was still alive then.</p><p>“Dad.” She poked him again. “Dad… daddy… dadarino… Doctor Dad…” She repeatedly poked him, trying to be deliberately as annoying as possible so he’d wake up.</p><p>The Doctor smacked his lips, eyes slowly creaking open. “…my eighth face is a lot shorter… and a lot more feminine than I remember.” He drunkenly creaked.</p><p>“No, dad,” El huffed. “It’s <em>me</em>.”</p><p>“Oh.” The Time Lord blinked. “El.” He recognized with a slight smile, before it dropped. “How’d you get here?”</p><p>“Mrs. Byers dropped me off.” El answered.</p><p>“Ah…” The Doctor nodded. “Did you have a good… spend-night thing at Will’s?”</p><p>El began to nod but stopped abruptly. “I didn’t stay the night.”</p><p>The Doctor frowned in confusion, looking to her. “I don’ get it… ‘s Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Sunday, or one of the boring ones…”</p><p>“Dad,” El began, “It’s Friday.”</p><p>“Friday.” The Doctor slowly nodded. “Fridays are good, I like Fridays. Why are you back?” His eyes began to slowly drift shut, as he stilled.</p><p>“Dad.” El poked him again, startling him back to semi-alertness. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“Wrong?” The Doctor repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Nothing’s <em>wrong.</em> I did…” He yawned. “Exactly what I meant to.”</p><p>El looked skeptical, looking the Doctor up and down. “Which was…?”</p><p>“Which was what?” The Doctor sluggishly replied. “Stupid? Moronic? No good horrible awful idea?”</p><p>“No,” El shook her head, “What did you <em>do</em>?”</p><p>“Oh, this…” The Doctor giggled, gesturing at himself. “I got drunk off me arse is what happened.”</p><p>El frowned. “Drunk?”</p><p>“Oh, ‘s great, El…” The Doctor drunkenly replied. “I can think my own thoughts without that damn spinning all the time.”</p><p>“Spinning? There’s no spinning.”</p><p>“Oh, but there <em>is…</em>” The Doctor flopped back. “You can’t feel it, but I can…”</p><p>“Dad,” El worriedly approached him. “Are you okay?”</p><p>“…the turn of the universe…” The Doctor replied. “I can feel it all the time and it is so, so<em> nauseating</em>. Constantly… spinning around, always spinning… and it won’t stop…”</p><p>El felt horror bubbling within her at the idea. She didn’t have a good frame of reference for how the Doctor experienced existence, but for a being like him, who had senses so far beyond humans’, it couldn’t have been entirely pleasant.</p><p>“It’s like a spinning top!” The Doctor continued. “Round and round and round we go, will we stop? No one knows…”</p><p>“Dad…” El placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.</p><p>“I’m tired…” The Doctor yawned. “So, so tired…”</p><p>“…come on.” She gently pulled him up. “Bedtime.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed slightly as he drunkenly stumbled, letting El lead him to the door of his bedroom. She’d never been inside until now, but the Doctor had to lay down right that second because he looked like he was going to puke.</p><p>The door opened, and El searched around for the bed. There’d be time to gawk at the rest of the Doctor’s room later, right now, she had to get him into bed.</p><p>It was hard to pick out from the rest of the clutter, but eventually, she found it, and led the Doctor over, the Time Lord flopping down onto the neatly made mattress, El being pulled down as well.</p><p>“Mmm…” The Doctor mumbled, face down in the pillow. “Warm bed…”</p><p>El frowned and tried to lift the Doctor’s arm so she could move.</p><p>No dice. He was <em>heavy</em>.</p><p>El considered using her powers for a moment. She decided it probably wouldn’t be a good idea, given why she’d come back in such a hurry to begin with.</p><p>El sighed and closed her eyes, trying to push the pain out of her mind, as the Doctor drifted back to sleep.</p><p>There’d be time enough to ask what she needed tomorrow.</p><p>--------------</p><p>The Doctor awoke to the sound of pained whimpering, eyes darting around in confusion. He was back in his room, but what in the <em>hell </em>was El doing in here?</p><p>The Time Lord inhaled as the slightly faded memory crossed his mind. El must’ve stayed to keep an eye on him.</p><p>Or, if the way he was holding onto her like she was a giant teddy bear was any clue, she literally couldn’t move.</p><p><em>‘Hm. I should get a teddy bear. Teddy bears aren’t </em>cool <em>but they are nice. Wait! No, get a grip! El in pain, help her.’</em></p><p>“El.” The Doctor quietly whispered, rousing her awake. “El. Are you okay?”</p><p>The girl’s eyes slowly popped open, looking to the Doctor with slight tears. “It hurts.”</p><p>“What does?”</p><p>“Stomach.” El answered.</p><p>“Hm…” The Doctor frowned. “Right then.” He picked her up, carrying her. “Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.”</p><p>El just blankly nodded, looking pale and dead tired, and relaxed in the Time Lord’s grip as he carried her to sickbay.</p><p>------------</p><p>Gently setting her down on one of the beds, the Doctor grabbed a scanner from nearby, running it over El’s body.</p><p>The device whirred, beeped, and clicked like a Geiger counter as it ran, before it let out one last, final beep.</p><p>“Wha-“ El grunted. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, looking at the readout. “Nothing, you’re fine.” He confusedly replied. “Well, it says here you’ve probably got dyslexia, the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, and… apparently, you might be tangentially related to Eminem. Quick, rap something. Actually, don’t. But other than that, you’re fine.” The Doctor looked up from the screen to her. “What did you say the matter was?”</p><p>“It hurts.” El repeated. “Like… tiny… knifes.”</p><p>“Knifes!?” The Doctor fearfully repeated. “Quick, give me the cliff notes version, tell me exactly when you noticed the problem.”</p><p>“Well, misses Byers made dinner,” El began, “And after I finished, I started feeling… not good. Joyce said the food could’ve been bad.”</p><p>“Fair enough.” The Doctor granted. “So, wait, you came back and you’re in this much pain because of bad food?”</p><p>El shook her head. “It’s not just the food. After we finished, I went to the bathroom and there was… well… blood.”</p><p>“Blood… BLOOD!?” The Doctor sniffed the air. Yep, there was a lingering metallic smell permeating the air. “How’d I not notice that!?” He looked over her face. “Where’d the blood come from!? You’re not coughing it up, are you!?”</p><p>El shook her head shyly. “It came from… well… um…” She whispered into the Doctor’s ear.</p><p>“Oh.” The Doctor blinked. “<em>Oh.</em>” His eyes bugged out as he scrambled away. “OH!”</p><p>“Dad?” El fearfully addressed. “What is it? Am I going to be okay?”</p><p>“Uh, well, y-yes!” The Doctor stammered. “Just… Stay there!” He directed, “Gotta find one of the storerooms!”</p><p>El watched, confused, as the Doctor stumbled out of the room, running as fast as his legs could carry him.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Um, okay, okay…” The Doctor mumbled to himself, “Don’t freak out, don’t freak out, she’s a little girl this was bound to happen eventually. This happened with Susan too, remember, and she was alright in the end, so don’t freak out.” He rambled, searching through the containers.</p><p>This wasn’t the first storeroom he searched, but the ninth, and in each one, he hadn’t been able to find what he was looking for.</p><p>“OKAY, I’M FREAKING OUT! I’M FREAKING OUT!” The Doctor began hyperventilating, as he found the last container in the last storeroom void of his target.</p><p>The TARDIS let out the telepathic equivalent of a sigh and gave the Time Lord the psychic equivalent of a smack to the back of the head.</p><p>“OW!” The Doctor recoiled. “HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KEEP CALM WHEN YOU’VE THROWN OUT ALL THE ‘NON-STANDARD’ INVENTORY OUT AFTER THE REMODEL!?”</p><p>The TARDIS huffed.</p><p>“Don’t blame <em>me</em>!” The Doctor shot back. “<em>You </em>know good and damn well I prefer traveling with the human females, why’d you go and do that!?”</p><p>The TARDIS replied with a gust of air that might be construed as laughter.</p><p>“I get it, it’s to make me squirm, isn’t it!?” The Doctor glared back. “Well, thanks, thanks a lot, dear! You could turn a small hiccup into a full-blown crisis! Where am I supposed to get them now!?”</p><p><em>“Buy N Large, your superstore!” </em>The TARDIS played a little clip of a corporate jingle over the speakers. <em>“All you need and so much more!”</em></p><p>“You mean…” The Doctor glanced to the door. “Go… shopping? …no, I refuse, I don’t like shopping!”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“El,” The Doctor popped back in, walking over to the girl curled into a ball on the bed. “Hey.” He gently rubbed her hair. “Look at me.” He said, the girl looking to him. “I’m going to go to the store and get what we need to fix this.”</p><p>“C… can I come?” El weakly requested.</p><p>The Doctor huffed with a smile. “Forgive me, but I don’t really believe you’re up to the task of moving. Stay here.” He ordered, gently patting her head. “You’ll have the TARDIS to keep you company and I’ll only be a couple of minutes.”</p><p>“…okay.” El slowly nodded. “Hurry.”</p><p>“Yes, ma’am.” The Doctor turned on his heel, marching out of the TARDIS on a mission.</p><p>------------</p><p>The sun glared in the Doctor’s face as he ran into the store. He’d been asleep a lot longer than normal.</p><p>Disregarding that, the Doctor madly darted between the aisles, before he found what he sought. The, shall we say, <em>feminine </em>products.</p><p>The Doctor’s face flushed in embarrassment as he looked at the boxes, trying to focus on anything else.</p><p><em>‘Quick, think about… apples, an apple a day keeps the Doctor away.’ </em>The Time Lord chuckled awkwardly. <em>‘I could use an apple right about now.’</em></p><p>A resident of the town walked past the Time Lord, looking him up and down. “First time?”</p><p>“Huh?” The Doctor looked to her. “Oh, yeah.”</p><p>The teenager threw her head back, laughing. “I can tell, you look like a tomato!”</p><p>The Doctor rubbed his face in embarrassment, stubble scratching his palms.</p><p>“So, who are you buying for?” The blonde inquired.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her reproachfully. “Isn’t that my business?”</p><p>The teenager shrugged. “I’m bored. And I don’t know if you know this, but tampons aren’t usually for dudes.”</p><p>“Oh, looks like somebody’s learned basic anatomy…” The Doctor grumbled turning back to the shelves. “If you <em>must </em>know, these are for my daughter, not me.”</p><p>“Oh…” The teenager smiled with knowing humor. “So, you’re totally freaking out because this is the first time you’ve had to do something like this. My dad looked like he was about to faint when I brought it up to him.”</p><p>“Not the first time, it’s just been a while.” The Doctor replied. “Lifetimes, if you will. And I’m totally clueless as to what would be best…” The Time Lord glanced at her. “You’re a teenager, probably, what’s best in your opinion?”</p><p>She said nothing, going for a shelf, before thrusting a box into the Doctor’s hands. “These are normally easier to deal with, in my opinion.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, looking at the picture, before looking back up. “Isn’t this basically a diaper?”</p><p>The blonde rolled her eyes. “<em>No</em>. They’re pads, doofus.”</p><p>“Great,” The Doctor sarcastically returned, “Because that clears up a lot of the confusion.” The look from his face disappeared. “Thank you.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m not done yet.” She replied, grabbing on his arm, pulling him across the store, to the drinks. She grabbed a six-pack of ginger ale, placing it in the Doctor’s arms.</p><p>The Time Lord blinked. How could she have known he could get drunk off the stuff?</p><p>“This normally helps with my cramps, don’t know if it’ll help your daughter, but hey, worth a shot.”</p><p>Oh, that made more sense.</p><p>“Oh, yes, thank you…” The Doctor blinked, realizing he’d never gotten her name.</p><p>“Robin.” She replied.</p><p>The Time Lord nodded. “Thanks, Robin.”</p><p>“No problem.” The teenager replied as the Time Lord turned to leave. “Hey,” She called, “It gets better.”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, turning back. “Huh?”</p><p>“You’re the dad,” Robin listed off, looking at the Doctor, “Doing something that’d more likely be given to the mom. And you were desperate enough to trust me to help, instead of said mom. Plus, you’re dressed like a hobo, and you’ve got stubble growing in all over your face, and you look like you’ve been drinking yourself to death.” She looked kinda sympathetic. “My guess is something happened.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked. He <em>wanted </em>to say ‘ha, nana nana boo boo, that’s not it at all,’ but that might only create more suspicion, so instead, he settled on something else. “Are you related to Sherlock Holmes by any chance?”</p><p>Robin shrugged. “People watching’s one of my hobbies. I’ve gotten good at it.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed slightly. “Well, you certainly don’t lack in modesty.” He sarcastically replied, turning. “Thanks again.”</p><p>The Time Lord checked his watch and grimaced.</p><p>He should probably get back, and soon.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor stood, jittering down the hallway, as he waited for El to emerge. After getting back to the TARDIS, the Time Lord had given her a quick run-through about puberty and the rather unfortunate fact that she would be forced to experience bleeding and cramps on a regular basis, given her the box, and sent her into the bathroom to sort herself out.</p><p>He trusted the TARDIS enough to talk El through the rest, he was <em>not </em>taking part of it.</p><p>Eventually, El finally emerged, and the Time Lord looked to her.</p><p>“You good?”</p><p>The girl nodded.</p><p>“Good.” The Doctor let out a sigh of relief. “I was not looking forward to having help you figure it out. What’d you do with your old clothes?”</p><p>“Left them.” El answered.</p><p>The Doctor nodded in approval. “Good. The TARDIS’ll take care of them, don’t worry. Here.” He handed her a bottle of ginger ale. “That should help with the cramps.”</p><p>The girl took it gratefully and threw it back, burping loudly.</p><p>The two began walking back down the corridors of the TARDIS, to the sitting room. Maybe there was something they could find to watch.</p><p>“Dad,” El looked to the Time Lord. “What is ‘drunk?’”</p><p>The Doctor stopped, sighing. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, I shouldn’t have let you see me like that.”</p><p>“But…” El frowned in confusion. “What <em>is </em>it?”</p><p>The Doctor rubbed his face. “It’s where a person drinks enough of a certain drink to the point it makes them act totally different. Some people get argumentative, some get… affectionate, but <em>I </em>get sleepy.”</p><p>“But… why?” El quietly asked.</p><p>“Sorry?”</p><p>“You never did that before.” El recognized. “Why now?”</p><p>“Because… I’m bored.” The Doctor shrugged. No way in hell he was going to tell her that being in one time zone was slowly driving him truly nuts, he wouldn’t allow her to blame herself for it.</p><p>“Oh.” El nodded in realization. “You should get a hobby.”</p><p>The Doctor laughed as they continued moving forward. “A hobby? What sort of hobby?”</p><p>El tilted her head in consideration, looking to the Doctor. “You could try… writing?”</p><p>The Doctor grimaced. “Oof, no. Tried that once and the publishing company hunted me down and almost killed me because I couldn’t meet my deadlines.”</p><p>El frowned. “That doesn’t sound reasonable.”</p><p>“What can I say?” The Doctor shrugged. “Publishing’s a cutthroat business. Literally.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor threw a jelly baby into his mouth from the big bowl the TARDIS had provided the two in the sitting room, as they watched an episode of EastEnders.</p><p>The Doctor frowned, as he suddenly realized, turning to El. “Why didn’t you wake me back up?”</p><p>“Huh?” El asked in response.</p><p>“When you helped me back to my room,” The Doctor began, “You wouldn’t tell me what was wrong, and you didn’t wake me back up.”</p><p>“You needed help.”</p><p>“El, you were <em>bleeding</em>. Forgive me If I found that to be a higher priority.” The Doctor retorted. “Besides, I’m your dad, I’m supposed to be taking care of you, not the other way around.”</p><p>El thinned her lips. “Good people take care of each other.”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor frowned. “Where on earth did you hear that?”</p><p>El shrugged. “Made it up. Sounds like something you would say.”</p><p>“Hm, so it does.” The Doctor replied. “But either way, I’m the parent, you’re the child, it isn’t your responsibility to worry about me.”</p><p>“Don’t care.” The girl stubbornly decided. “New rule. Rule… two.”</p><p>“Oh, so just behind ‘don’t wander off?’”</p><p>El nodded. “We both take care of each other. No matter what.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed but smiled. “Yes, ma’am. Whatever her majesty decides is best, ma’am.”</p><p>El shook her head, as she turned back to the television. “Oh, and rule three.”</p><p>“Rule three?”</p><p>“Get a hobby.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0099"><h2>99. The Dream World: First Christmas</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor has a problem. Well, not that that’s unexpected, now that he’s spending most of his days getting blissfully inebriated, but it’s a different sort of problem than ‘I’ve gone and spilled all my drink all over my clothes.’</p><p>It’s fast approaching Christmas, and though the Time Lord had been talking about it for quite some time, he has no goddamn plan for actually getting through the holiday.</p><p>So, when December 21<sup>st</sup> rolls around, and there’s no tree, no decorations of any sort, no <em>presents</em>, and El’s constantly bouncing up and down excited for the approaching holiday, the Doctor is in a bit of a panic.</p><p>“Will says his mom’s probably gonna get him an <em>Atari</em> this year!” El peppily relayed. “And <em>lots </em>of drawing supplies!”</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “Do you even know what an Atari <em>is</em>?”</p><p>El shrugged. “No idea. But it’s <em>exciting!</em>” El continued.</p><p>The Time Lord forced himself to smile as he listened to El rattle off a list of everything her friends said they’d wanted, and some stuff she wanted herself, while fighting back an intense spike of panic.</p><p>He’s <em>really </em>in trouble now.</p><p>Now, the Doctor isn’t <em>scared </em>of El herself per se, but he definitely <em>is </em>scared of letting her down, especially after he promised over and over they’d properly celebrate Christmas. It’s three <em>days </em>until Christmas eve, they’ve got no decorations, no gifts, no <em>food</em>.</p><p>So that leaves three days of linear time to get everything they need. The tree and decorations are going to be the easiest, the TARDIS storerooms already have the decorations ready to be pulled out and put to use, and finding a tree is going to be as easy as going to one of the gardens, picking one out, and having the TARDIS plop it down in the sitting room.</p><p>Food is going to be moderately difficult, but he can do it. Trying to juggle seven different types of food is going to be a welcome distraction, actually.</p><p>That left gifts.</p><p>The Doctor checked his watch, biting his lip. Hawkins is too small a town to get anything of real value. Unlike the 21st century, where there were massive department stores and online shopping available to the masses no matter where you lived, he’d going to have to get creative in the 80s.</p><p>He’s not going to take the TARDIS. Because if he flies away, he might not want to come back.</p><p>So, he’s probably going to have to go to one of the big cities nearby. Problem was, almost <em>all </em>of them were hours away.</p><p>Bessie’s fast, but he needs something with a bit more oomph.</p><p>“Right, El!” The Doctor clapped his hands, shooting to his feet. “I’m going to be gone for a few days, but I’ll be back in time for Christmas Eve, cross my hearts.”</p><p>The girl blinked in confusion, scrambling to keep up with the Time Lord as he began striding through the TARDIS on a new mission. “Where’re you going?”</p><p>“To get stuff for Christmas, silly.” The Doctor shot back, trying to find the garage.</p><p>El tilted her head. “Can I come?”</p><p>“’Fraid not, kiddo.” The Doctor returned with a smile. “Don’t want you getting a sneak peek at your presents.”</p><p>El frowned. “Well… what am I supposed to do?”</p><p>“Go to Will’s.” The Doctor returned, finding the correct door. “Or Mike’s, or you could stay in the TARDIS, but that’d be a bit boring, don’tcha think?”</p><p>El nodded, as the Doctor walked over to an odd craft parked in the corner.</p><p>The vehicle looked to be a hovercraft, shaped almost like an egg laying on its side and flattened out a bit, with two fins coming out of the sides. Two headlamps were fixed to the front, below a cockpit-like canopy with two windows.</p><p>“El,” The Doctor patted her on the back, “Meet the Whomobile!”</p><p>The girl double-took. “The <em>what</em>?”</p><p>“The Whomobile.” The Doctor glanced at her. “My third face had a penchant for spy gadgets and cool cars. Almost fancied himself a cross between James Bond and Batman.”</p><p>El blinked. “Who’re they?”</p><p>“One is the greatest spy who ever lived, the other the greatest detective since Sherlock Holmes.” The Doctor answered, lifting the canopy open for him to climb in. “Come on.” He patted the passenger seat.</p><p>El looked wary, but climbed in, the canopy closing with a mechanical whirr.</p><p>The engine of the Whomobile, sounding more like a spinning turbine than any engine in any car El had heard, activated, screens, buttons, and switches inside the vehicle coming to life.</p><p>The Doctor hit one of the buttons, and the garage door opened, before he floored it, the turbine spinning up loudly as the Whomobile rocketed out of the TARDIS onto the streets of Hawkins, the garage door shutting behind it.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Whomobile slowed, coming to a stop, the engine calming as the Doctor lifted the cockpit.</p><p>El frowned, looking around. “What are we doing here?”</p><p>“This is where you get out.” The Doctor instructed, passing El her overnight bag with enough supplies to last until he returned. “I don’t want the Byers seeing this next bit. There’s a reason why I prefer using Bessie to this one most of the time.”</p><p>El thinned her lips. “How far?” She questioned, slinging her bag over her shoulder.</p><p>“Not far, just out of the woods there.” He pointed. “Not a long walk, don’t worry. And I sent word you’re coming.”</p><p>“…See you when you get back.” El stated, getting out. “Miss you.”</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, pointing in response. “Don’t worry, it’s just until Christmas Eve! And think about it, it’s more time you get to spend with your friend.”</p><p>El nodded, considering it.</p><p>“Now, stand back.” The Doctor advised, giggling as the canopy shut. The tires screeched as the car pulled back, El standing a comfortable distance away.</p><p>El looked on, curious, waiting for the Doctor to do whatever it was he was doing.</p><p>“Repulsor jets active!” The Doctor grinned, looking out to El. “G-diffusers to maximum!”</p><p>Air was suddenly blasted out from underneath the Whomobile, blowing El’s hair back, as the car began to float off the ground, three circles on the bottom in a triangle.</p><p>“It flies!?” El shouted over the small windstorm the vehicle was creating, gaping as she looked up at the hovering car.</p><p>“It doesn’t just fly!” The Doctor returned, as the Whomobile pointed to face northwest. “It flies… in style!”</p><p>The two rear lamps roared with energy, becoming thrusters instead of mere lights, as the Whomobile shoot forward like a bullet, climbing higher and higher into the atmosphere.</p><p>El breathed, looking on with a smile. “Cool.”</p><p>--------------</p><p>El stood patiently on the porch of the Byers house after knocking, waiting for one of them to answer the door.</p><p>It swung open, and the girl was met with Will’s smiling face. “El!” He excitedly pulled her in. “Come look! We went to my Uncle Kenny’s for his Christmas, and I got a bunch of cool stuff, look!”</p><p>El blinked as Will moved around like a caffeinated gopher, Jonathan and Joyce watching with sympathetic smiles, as Will led her into his room.</p><p>“Look!” Will waved around a robot toy in his arms. It looked like the cab of a truck had been taken, given arms, legs, and a head.</p><p>El tilted her head, eyebrows furrowing as the girl looked at the toy. “What is it?”</p><p>“It’s a robot that turns into a CAR!” Will excitedly replied, quickly going through the motions to turn it into a truck and back again about five times.</p><p>El giggled, looking back up at Will. “That thing blew your mind, didn’t it?”</p><p>“Well,” Will sheepishly shrugged.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“So,” Will asked, munching on a chocolate bar as he and El went about their normal activity of drawing.</p><p>El, in her own opinion, thought she was improving quite a bit. Still not to the level of Will, but certainly above the simple lines and stick figures she’d started out.</p><p>“What’d your dad have to go do?” Will inquired. “I heard him talking to my mom, he sounded kinda panicked.”</p><p>“Christmas shopping.”</p><p>Will flinched. “This late?” He raised his chocolate bar. “Good luck, Doctor… Are you <em>sure </em>he doesn’t have a name besides that?”</p><p>El shrugged. “I’m trying to get him to tell me. It’s hard. You have blue?”</p><p>Will nodded, handing over a blue crayon.</p><p>“Thanks.” El kicked her feet absent-mindedly as she went back to drawing.</p><p>Will frowned internally. He’d never heard of someone being so stingy with their name.</p><p>“So,” Will changed the subject. “What’s he getting you for Christmas?”</p><p>“Don’t know.” El stated, adding a blue outline on to the sheet.</p><p>“Fair enough.” Will replied, as El began to fill in the color. “What’re you getting him?”</p><p>El stopped, looking up. “What am I… getting him?” She repeated, like she hadn’t considered that.</p><p>“Yeah.” Will nodded.</p><p>“But…” El blinked. “Dustin said that it was the parents’ job to get stuff.”</p><p>“That’s because he’s spoiled.” Will retorted, sighing. “That was a joke.” He said, before she could speak. He and the others learned early on that El really didn’t understand sarcasm most of the time unless it was really, really blatant. “It’s Christmas. It’s not just about getting stuff, it’s about giving it too.”</p><p>“Giving it, right.” El repeated with a nod. The Doctor said as much.</p><p>“Like, this one year, I made a painting of my mom as a character in D&amp;D.” Will exposited. “Not a drawing, but an actual painting with real paint.”</p><p>El nodded. “What did she do with it?”</p><p>“She hung it up on the wall.” Will answered. “It’s not there anymore cause my dad got drunk one night and ruined it, but…”</p><p>“I’m sorry.”</p><p>Will shook his head. “It’s all in the past now. So, what are you going to get your dad?”</p><p>“I… don’t know.” El admitted.</p><p>“Well,” Will set his sketchpad aside, “Think about it, what does he like?”</p><p>El frowned in thought. “Well, he likes bow ties, and… fish fingers and custard?”</p><p>“Really?” Will asked. “You don’t know <em>anything </em>about what he likes?”</p><p>“Um… he likes the color blue?” The girl awkwardly cringed.</p><p>“Hm…” Will frowned in contemplation. “Does he like hats?”</p><p>El thinned her lips. She’d recalled seeing an entire room on board the TARDIS devoted to just hats, separate from the wardrobe entirely, so, yes, she would say the Doctor liked hats.</p><p>Confirming Will’s question, El nodded.</p><p>“Okay,” Will stood up. “We can work with that.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>The Whomobile touched down in a secluded section of Chicago, and the Doctor got out, closing the canopy and locking it behind him.</p><p>No one would be able to get inside, it had security tech that made the TARDIS look positively defenseless.</p><p>Walking down the street into the nearby Sears first, the Doctor gulped.</p><p>He had a <em>lot </em>of work to do.</p><p>-------------</p><p>“Okay,” Will set some string down in front of El. “We’ve got about…” He glanced at the calendar. “Three days to do this. Two days is all I need.”</p><p>El tilted her head, watching curiously as Will went for the bottom drawer in his bedside table.</p><p>“Three days for what?” El inquired.</p><p>“For this.” He pulled out an old cookie tin, sitting down in front of El, pulling out two sticks.</p><p>El frowned, tilting her head.</p><p>Will, to his credit, picked up on the girl’s unspoken question. “These are knitting needles.” The boy explained. “And we’re going to use them to make your dad’s present.”</p><p>El looked up, slightly scared. “Needles?”</p><p>“Not that kind of needle.” Will replied, taking the spool of TARDIS blue wool string. “Here, watch. My grandma--she taught me how to do this.”</p><p>El looked on, intrigued as Will took the string and began to work the needles, bringing the string together, weaving it into a shape.</p><p>El glanced up, looking at Will’s face. “What can I do?”</p><p>“Well, you’ve already picked the color.” Will replied, continuing the process. “We need something to put it in. How about you make a box for it?”</p><p>“Box.” El nodded. “I can do that.”</p><p>------------</p><p>The next two days passed with little fanfare. During the waking hours, El and Will would both work on their sections of the Doctor’s gift, while the Time Lord continued hopping from city to city in a mad dash to find El’s presents.</p><p>It was touch-and-go for a long while there. Half the stores on the planet were in total pandemonium because of shoppers in similar situations as he, and it took a <em>lot </em>of searching, praying, and pure luck just to get what he was looking for.</p><p>But, by the end of it, the Doctor had managed to find everything that, in his opinion, suited El perfectly. He hoped she’d like it all, but then again, it’s not like she’d given him a <em>list</em>.</p><p>Zipping back to Hawkins so fast the Whomobile’s outer body began to heat up and glow faintly orange, the car touched down under the cover of night, and he pulled into the TARDIS’s garage, quickly scrambling to get everything unloaded from the vehicle, into a neat stack on the ground.</p><p>Then, he turned, following the flashing lights to the new room.</p><p>The TARDIS, clever girl, had constructed a specially designed wrapping room while he was out. Tubes of wrapping paper of more than a thousand different patterns lined the walls, all of them bright and gaudy to the point that if someone shined a dim light in there, it would bounce around until he was blinded.</p><p>The old girl had already seen to moving El’s stack of gifts there, and the Doctor rubbed his hands together.</p><p>Time to get to work.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The next day, which just so happened to be Christmas Eve, El’s eyes creaked open as she looked around from her spot on the couch. The Doctor’s present sat in the box she’d crafted for him, next to her bag on the coffee table.</p><p>Joyce was in the kitchen, and the delectable aroma of frying meat filled the air.</p><p>An engine echoed from outside, and El glanced out, watching as the Doctor pulled up in Bessie. The Time Lord caught a glimpse of her watching, and he excitedly waved, sitting there.</p><p>“Joyce,” El glanced into the kitchen, “My dad’s here.” She said, very carefully placing the box in her bag. Will said it would be sturdy, with how much carboard she’d layered, but she didn’t want to take any chances, and put it in one of the cleared-out pockets.</p><p>“Okay,” Joyce returned, coming back into the living room. “You sure you don’t want to stay for breakfast?”</p><p>El nodded. “Dad says we’re going to have eggo extravaganzas.”</p><p>“Oh?” Joyce raised a curious eyebrow, crossing her arms with a smile. “What’s that, then?”</p><p>“We take eggos and stack them on top of each other, putting whipped cream and candy stuff in the middle.” El explained. She’d woken up one morning to find the Doctor hungover to hell and back and craving something really, really sugary. The Time Lord had whipped out a box of eggos so he could make the case he <em>wasn’t </em>just eating pure sugar and stacked the thing so high that it almost tipped over. “It’s good. We don’t eat them all the time though. The sugar gives him tooth aches.”</p><p>“Well then, I don’t wanna keep you from your teeth-rottingly delicious breakfast.” Joyce smiled, pulling El into a kind farewell hug. “Merry Christmas.”</p><p>“Merry Christmas.” El parroted, opening the door. “Tell Will I said thanks for the help!” She directed, closing the door behind her as she dashed out to the car, plopping down next to the Doctor.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Will yawned, rubbing sleep out of his eyes as he came out of his room. “Where’s El?”</p><p>“Her dad came by and picked her up.” Joyce answered, tending to breakfast. “She said thanks for helping her.”</p><p>Will nodded, turning to go back to his room. The boy frowned, as he spotted the drawing on the floor.</p><p>Another one of El’s, of five, peppershaker-like figures in different colors on the page, standing across from the Doctor.</p><p>Odd. She was making a habit of forgetting her drawings.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Time Lord smiled at her as they hit the road. “You have fun on your little three-day sleepover?”</p><p>El groaned. “Oh, it was terrible!”</p><p>“What?” The Doctor looked at her in shock. “Why do you say that!?”</p><p>“Because you,” She tapped him in the chest, “Ruined my hair! It took me and Joyce an <em>hour </em>to brush the knots out.”</p><p>“Oof, yikes.” The Doctor flinched. “Yeah, repulsor engines and hair do <em>not </em>mix.”</p><p>“I noticed that.” El retorted.</p><p>“Oh, don’t be grumpy!” The Doctor replied. “Today’s gonna be a fun day, trust me! We’re gonna put out the decorations and put up a tree!”</p><p>“A tree?” El repeated. She opened her mouth to continue, when her stomach rumbled. “Breakfast first.”</p><p>The Doctor nodded in agreement. “Breakfast.”</p><p>--------------</p><p>“Alright, now,” The Doctor led El back to the TARDIS sitting room, now that they both were full of the sugariest, high calorie ‘meal’ known to mankind. He pushed the door open, striding inside first to the large fir tree next to the fireplace, a safe distance away as to not combust on accident. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome, to the main event!” He twirled.</p><p>Boxes upon boxes were laid out on the sofa, jingling as the Doctor’s footsteps reverberated through the floor.</p><p>“Right,” The Time Lord clapped his hands, looking to the girl excitedly, “Where do you wanna start?”</p><p>------------</p><p>Decorating, El decided, was rather fun. Though putting up the decorations themselves felt more like a chore than a fun activity, she and the Doctor had fun with it by blasting Christmas music from all over time and space at full volume while doing so, stuffing their faces with candy, and generally just goofing off.</p><p>More times than El could count, the Doctor had gotten tangled in lines of tinsel and lengths of tree lights, like a straitjacket of his own, accidental making.</p><p>But, the two continued, and by the end of it, the star was ready to go onto the top of the tree.</p><p>The Doctor looked at El, before handing the ornament to her. “Here. Let’s let you do the honors.”</p><p>The girl smiled, letting go of the star. Instead of falling, it began to float onto the top of the tree, plugging itself into the cord of the tree lights.</p><p>“Now…” The Doctor rubbed his hands together, running over to the switch. “Ready?”</p><p>El nodded and turned her attention to the tree. The Doctor clicked the button on the lights with his foot, and instantly, the room was bathed in a white/rainbow glow, the tree shining brighter than even the television above the fireplace mantle.</p><p>“Wow…” El breathed, looking at the sparkling micro-monument. “Pretty.”</p><p>“Yep.” The Doctor smiled, throwing an arm around her shoulders. “You did good.”</p><p>El looked to the Time Lord. “We <em>both </em>did good.”</p><p>“Heheh,” The Doctor chuckled, “Yep. One last thing…” He looked up at the ceiling. “Ready, old girl?”</p><p>The TARDIS replied with a puff of warm air, as a stack of presents wrapped in every kind of wrapping paper known to man materialized underneath the tree.</p><p>El inhaled, about to sprint over.</p><p>“Ah, ah, ah!” The Doctor stopped her. “Not yet. You have to wait until tomorrow.”</p><p>“Aw…” The girl dejectedly muttered. “What are we supposed to do then?”</p><p>The Doctor gestured over to the couch and flopped down on it. “Watch Christmas movies, eat junk food, and get fat!”</p><p>El giggled. That sounded like a good plan.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes slowly creaked open, as he looked around. It took him a moment to register it in the dark room, but there was a tiny form pressed into his side, and his memory came back.</p><p>El had fallen asleep halfway through their fifth Christmas movie of the marathon, <em>A Miracle On 34<sup>th</sup> Street, </em>and it seemed the Doctor hadn’t been long for the dream world either.</p><p>The Time Lord stretched out, trying not to disturb the girl curled into his side under a blanket. He <em>never </em>drifted off like that before. Time Lords at most only needed two hours of sleep per <em>month</em>.</p><p>He was really getting on a bit in his old age… that, or the ‘hobo’ clothes were comfier than he thought. Probably both.</p><p>El stirred, blinking sleep out of her eyes and brushing her chestnut curls aside as she looked up.</p><p>“Good morning, sweetheart.” The Doctor quietly greeted, smiling. “Sleep well?”</p><p>The girl nodded, flopping across the Doctor’s lap, as she looked up at the ceiling.</p><p>“You going to get off of me?”</p><p>El tilted her head. “Why?”</p><p>“Cause it’s Christmas morning and you’ve got presents to open.”</p><p>El sharply inhaled, eyes widening in excitement as she shot to her feet, getting tangled in the blanket in the process.</p><p>“Oop, oop.” The Doctor shot to his feet, catching her before she could fall. “There, just sit there.” He let her gently down onto the floor, the girl still wrapped in the blanket like a burrito.</p><p>El wriggled, getting her arms free, as the Doctor slid the stack of presents over to her.</p><p>With a smile on his face, the Time Lord gestured to the stack. “Go for it.”</p><p>El returned the Doctor’s toothy grin and turned to the stack of presents.</p><p>If they had emotions… they’d be afraid.</p><p>Very, very afraid.</p><p>-------------</p><p>By the end of it, assorted things like makeup pallets, clothes, some toys the Doctor had declared as ‘cool,’ some books that probably were in the TARDIS library, and one of the supercoms that Will and his group of friends likewise possessed were all scattered across the floor of the sitting room, nearly buried under the scattered scraps of wrapping paper.</p><p>The Doctor was half worried that El wouldn’t like it. But seeing her face as she opened each one only proved to him those fears were totally unfounded.</p><p>She’d never gotten anything in her life condition-free, certainly not on this scale, and all of it came from the Doctor. Of course she would love it.</p><p>El <em>was </em>a bit confused at some of it, admittedly. Like the makeup. And some of the clothes (the Doctor had to explain that the cups of a training bra did <em>not </em>go over her ears). But with the Doctor there to explain what she didn’t understand, she nevertheless wound up liking mostly everything.</p><p>El pushed herself to her feet, throwing her arms around the Doctor. “Thank you.”</p><p>The Doctor smiled, snuggling into her strawberry-scented hair. “You’re welcome.”</p><p>“I have something for you too.” El said.</p><p>The Doctor pulled back in confusion. “For me? But you don’t have any mon-“</p><p>“I made it.” El cut him off, going to where her bag was, pulling the gift out. “Here.” She offered it to the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord gingerly took the box, a scaled-down model of the TARDIS made of cardboard and construction paper. “It’s the TARDIS! That’s so cool!”</p><p>El shook her head. “That’s the box. Take the top off.”</p><p>The Doctor blinked, but did as he was instructed, setting the lid aside. Reaching in, he pulled out a knit-together tapestry of cloth.</p><p>The Time Lord ran it around in his hands. It was a beanie, obviously hand-knit together, colored TARDIS blue, with the word ‘dad’ on the side in neon pink.</p><p>“Do you…” El nervously jittered. “Like it?”</p><p>“Oh, El…” The Doctor breathed, fixing it to his head. “I love it! And you made this!?”</p><p>El nodded, a happy smile overtaking her. “Will got the bottom rim, but I did the rest.”</p><p>“It looks brilliant.” The Doctor complimented, checking himself out in the black screen of the television. Perhaps he should be concerned, now that he went from track-star hobo to rapper hobo, but honestly, he didn’t care.</p><p>The clothes were comfortable, and beanies were cool! Well, he hadn’t considered them cool, but then El made him one for Christmas.</p><p>“Thank you, so, so much.” The Doctor said to El, pulling her into another hug.</p><p>El smiled.</p><p>Not a bad first Christmas by any metric.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0100"><h2>100. The Dream World: Careless Whisper</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter one-hundred... It's been a long road to this point, even though I just started writing this last month. To everyone who's read and stuck with me this far, left any reviews or just comments, and kudos, each and every one of you has my thanks. I could write until I keeled over and died, but without anyone reading, it'd be meaningless. From the bottom of my hearts, thank you.</p><p>We've still got a long way to go from here, and after finals are done and over with, I'm going to put my attention back on this. Until then, if you have an idea for something you'd like to see, please leave a comment. I may not respond to every one, but I do READ every one.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Turns out, Robin is a TERRIBLE influence.</p><p>The Doctor hadn’t expected to run into her again, certainly not with the time he spent in the TARDIS, but he got bored again and decided to wander around town.</p><p><em>That’s </em>when he saw her. Or rather, she saw him.</p><p>“Hey hey!” Robin strode over. “Tampon guy!”</p><p>“Christ…” The Doctor grumbled. “I’m never going to live that down?”</p><p>“Not if I have anything to say about it.” Robin crossed her arms.</p><p>The Doctor glanced at her. “There are literally <em>thousands </em>of other people in this town you can be picking on. Why me?”</p><p>Robin shrugged, sitting down on the bench next to the Doctor, down at the other end. “Your chin is hilarious.”</p><p>The Time Lord spluttered, protectively grasping his jaw. “Oi! No it isn’t! It’s… chiseled! That’s it, chiseled.”</p><p>Robin huffed, crossing her arms. “Whatever you say, dude. So,” She looked to him, “What’re you doing?”</p><p>“Oh, nothing.” The Doctor sarcastically replied. “Wondering why a teenager several cen- decades my younger is harassing me.”</p><p>“It’s fun.” Robin retorted. “About as fun as the people watching.”</p><p>The Doctor shot Robin a look even more laced with sarcasm. “People watching?”</p><p>“More exciting than looking at <em>birds </em>all day.” Robin shot back, glancing across the way. “See him over there?” She pointed to the overweight man in a police uniform. “Chief Hopper. Steve Harrington’s his secret child from a love affair, he’s wanted in seven states, <em>and </em>he can play the clarinet.”</p><p>The Doctor looked at her, curious. “You got all that from just <em>looking </em>at him?”</p><p>Robin snorted. “Of course not. It’s fun to make it up.”</p><p>“…hm.” The Doctor made a tiny grunt in response, looking to a woman walking across the courtyard from the courthouse. “That’s…”</p><p>“Marissa, the librarian.” Robin stated.</p><p>“She’s got… let’s see…” The Time Lord’s eyes narrowed. “She’s got a dog that she taught to sing daisy bell and one of her legs is <em>actually </em>another arm.”</p><p>Robin laughed. “Okay, funny.”</p><p>“Is it?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>“Yep.” Robin answered. “The point’s to make up absurd things on the fly. See? Fun.”</p><p>“Yeah.” The Doctor nodded. “Fun.” He glanced at Robin. “What’re you doing here?”</p><p>Robin huffed, crossing her arms looking offended. “What? Can’t a girl have a nice day out a public park?”</p><p>“It’s New Years’ Eve,” The Doctor began in response, turning the same sort of deductive tone she used on him in that store right back on her, “You’re a teenager who should probably be messing about with her friends, but instead, you’re here at a park, sitting next to an idiot wearing a beanie who’s drinking.” The Time Lord finished, taking a swig of his ginger beer. “Not normal teenager behavior.”</p><p>“And what about you?” Robin retorted. “Don’t you have a kid you’re supposed to be taking care of or something?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “She’s at a friend’s.”</p><p>Robin responded with a conceding nod, turning to look into the distance. “…I don’t have many friends.” She admitted, sighing. “That’s not saying I haven’t tried, but…” She shrugged. “Not many people like me.”</p><p>“That’s ridiculous!” The Doctor honestly replied, offended on her behalf. He didn’t really know her all that well, but Robin seemed like a wonderful character. Reminded him a bit of Susan’s mum, actually.</p><p>“It’s the truth.” Robin sadly admitted.</p><p>“Well, if it’s any consolation, I didn’t have many friends when I was your age either.” The Doctor told her. “One, actually.”</p><p>“Oh?”</p><p>The Doctor nodded. “Oh.” He took a swig of his drink. “The thing about being in high school is it seems all about assignments and popular people and cliques parties and doing the ol’ horizontal mambo when you’re too young, and the world seems like it’ll end if you don’t take part in it, or you get lobbed in with the wrong people, or if you mess up.” The Time Lord shrugged. “But you grow up and realize, the real world really is nothing like that. It’s so much bigger, so much more delightful, way madder... and oddly, kinda simpler. You grow up and realize it was all so… ridiculous.” He looked back to her. “You may not have friends now, but you will. You just keep trying.”</p><p>“…yeah, nice pep talk.” Robin complimented, blinking. “But <em>nothing </em>that compares to the situation at hand.”</p><p>The Doctor rolled his eyes, huffing as he got to his feet. “Well then, let’s get you some friends now.” He checked his watch. “It’s almost dark, and there’s bound to be a party going on nearby. What say we crash it?”</p><p>“<em>Crash </em>a party?” Robin repeated. “With you?”</p><p>The Doctor shrugged. “Life is short. Live a little.”</p><p>“I don’t even know who you <em>are</em>!”</p><p>“Easy, I’m the Doctor.” The Time Lord replied. “And whether you’re coming with me or not, I’m <em>going </em>to find a party to crash.” He looked around. “I just need to remember where I parked…”</p><p>Robin crossed her arms, thinking. “…There’s one being held at Steve Harrington’s house. A lot of the people from the high school are going.”</p><p>“This would be the same Steve Harrington who’s the illegitimate child of the police chief?”</p><p>“Yes. No. Oh, you know what I mean.”</p><p>“Great!” The Doctor clapped his hands. “Now, we’ve got a party to crash. Oh, how exciting!” He giggled as he took the lead down the street. He wasn’t asking Robin to get into his car.</p><p>That’d be creepy.</p><p>“Hold on, where are you going?” Robin stopped him.</p><p>“To the party?”</p><p>“It’s <em>this </em>way.” She guided, turning the Doctor back around.</p><p>“Goodo.” The Doctor nodded.</p><p>“Oh, we’re probably going to have to stop by the liquor store.”</p><p>“The <em>what!?”</em></p><p>Robin let out a sigh. “Haven’t you <em>ever </em>crashed a party?”</p><p>“Lemme think.” The Doctor replied. “No.”</p><p>“Then let me give you a tip.” Robin looked at him. “People are going to be less likely to throw you out if you bring free booze.”</p><p>“I’m not getting a houseful of teenagers sloshed!”</p><p>Robin shrugged. “It was your idea to crash the party. Besides, think of it like <em>this:” </em>She held up her fingers. “While everybody else is there getting so drunk they won’t be able to remember the last week, <em>you </em>can be the responsible one.”</p><p>“Right, responsible.” The Doctor nodded. “I can do responsible.”</p><p>-------------</p><p>“What’re we doing?” El asked as she hung onto Will, the boy tearing rubber to get to Mike’s house before sundown. She got a bike in that massive pile of presents, but she still hadn’t felt comfortable riding it on her own, not until she got more practice in.</p><p>“Mike has a surprise for you.” Will answered, rounding the bend. “Well, really it’s a surprise from all of us, but Mike was the last one up working on it.”</p><p>El frowned. “Working on what?”</p><p>“You’ll see.” Will evasively replied as they passed back outside the TARDIS. “Which one of these is yours?”</p><p>“That one.” El gestured to the TARDIS.</p><p>Will frowned slightly. “Nice… nice house.” Was all he brought himself to say. Something about the place was <em>off, </em>setting off a buzzer in his brain, but he couldn’t figure out what.</p><p>“Yeah.” El smiled, shooting a mental wave to the ship, pleasantly surprised when the TARDIS returned it. “Why’re we going over to Mike’s?” She asked, turning her attention back to Will.</p><p>“The stuff’s all set up there.” Will replied. “Besides, we thought it’d be more appropriate.”</p><p>El frowned. “Appropriate… why now?”</p><p>“New Years is one of the only nights we can stay up to the next day and get away with it.” Will answered, as they rolled around the side of Mike’s house.</p><p>“We’re not going through the front?”</p><p>“Mike’s mom already knows we’re coming, she’s cool with it.” Will explained.</p><p>El nodded as the bike slowed, and she hopped off first, followed by Will. She pulled her coat tighter around herself, allowing the boy to take the lead to the door first.</p><p>Will knocked before pushing the door open, walking in.</p><p>El moved to enter, and stood at the threshold, looking around in awe.</p><p>The boys had turned the basement into a small kingdom of pillow forts, while blankets hung from the ceiling like banners.</p><p>Will quickly ducked out of sight, as Mike, Dustin, and Lucas came out of the woodwork, wearing what looked like homemade costumes. Mike looked like a sort of king, Dustin was wearing an obviously fake beard and holding an empty mug, and Lucas was dressed up as a knight.</p><p>“GREETINGS, FAIR LADY!” Mike loudly bellowed with all the same enthusiasm of BRIAN BLESSED.</p><p>“Ow!” Dustin flinched. “Son of a bitch, I’m standing right here!”</p><p>“Silence, Sir Dustin!” Mike responded. “My voice may bellow with the same fierce roar as a thousand dragons, but that is because tonight is a most joyous night! Filled with adventure, danger, and loot!”</p><p>El looked between the three, confused. “What’s going on?”</p><p>Lucas sighed, breaking character. “Will thought that since you’ve started spending a decent amount with us nerds, you might like to play D&amp;D with us.”</p><p>El blinked. “And that means you had to do all… this?”</p><p>“It’s your first game.” Mike shrugged in response. “It has to be special.”</p><p>“Right then,” Will stepped out from wherever he had hidden, wearing a wizard costume. “Shall we, my friends?”</p><p>El looked between the four.</p><p>These guys were <em>weird.</em></p><p>…the good kind of weird, in her opinion.</p><p>-----------</p><p>“Alright,” The Doctor pushed away the part of his brain shouting at him for going to a teenager party on New Year’s. “Door, door…”</p><p>Robin looked at the Time Lord with dripping sarcasm. “You’re going through the front door?”</p><p>“Of course!” The Doctor replied, finding the house with the party. It was easy to spot really, all he had to do was find the wild crowd of high schoolers. “Blimey, that’s quite the shindig they’ve got going down there.”</p><p>“Doctor,” She looked to the Time Lord as they walked up to the front. “This was a bad idea, we should go.”</p><p>“Whoops, too late!” The Doctor pushed the door open, the sounds of music playing on full-blast filling the air. “Come on, Rob, it’ll be fun!”</p><p>“We’re going to get caught!”</p><p>“Rule one!” The Doctor threw back. “Act like you belong and people will assume you do!”</p><p>“I <em>seriously </em>doubt that’s going to work.” Robin replied.</p><p>The Doctor turned around to face her. “Hey. Trust me?”</p><p>“No.” The teenager responded.</p><p>“…okay, fair enough.” The Doctor replied. “At least trust I know what I’m doing then. Worse case scenario, we get asked to leave. Best case…” He grinned. “We become the life of the party and everybody loves you!”</p><p>“…why are you doing this?” Robin inquired.</p><p>The Time Lord shrugged. “Same reason you were out in the park today to begin with. I’m bored and I don’t have any friends. So, coming?” He glanced to the door.</p><p>“…yeah, alright.” Robin conceded, grabbing the case of beer, following the Time Lord in.</p><p>“Oh, eugh.” The Doctor’s nose crinkled, as the door shut behind them. “Can practically smell the hormones and the booze.”</p><p>“Right.” Robin agreed, her nose twisting in displeasure as well. “What are we supposed to do now?”</p><p>“It’s a party.” The Doctor replied, leading her through the crowds of teenagers dancing their lives away. “We party.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“You come to a fork in the caverns,” Mike outlined, as the group was gathered at the table. El had chosen to be a mage, the only thing that she really understood about it all, and now, the campaign proper had begun. “A statue lies in the middle of the fork, a lone sentinel guarding the long-abandoned catacombs. There’s a torch in its hand, but only one. The party with have to stick close together to navigate the darkness.”</p><p>El frowned, thinking. “Can I check the statue?”</p><p>Dustin blinked, frowning. “Why would you want to do that?”</p><p>“…it might be alive.” El replied.</p><p>Lucas huffed. “It’s a <em>statue</em>.”</p><p>“It might only be a statue while we’re looking.” El retorted.</p><p>“Where…” Will began in confusion. “Where did you come up with that?”</p><p>El shifted, not wanting to reflect on the Weeping Angels. “It’s only one statue with a torch in the dark… someone wanted it to be seen?”</p><p>Mike sighed. “Roll for initiative.”</p><p>El nodded and dropped the die on the table. “Seventeen.”</p><p>“You check over the statue. There’s a small compartment in the chest with a small bag of gold coins.” Mike exposited.</p><p>El nodded in satisfaction.</p><p>Will frowned. “Was there a point to all that?”</p><p>El shrugged.</p><p>“…gives me a good idea for a monster.” Mike considered, as they continued.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The Doctor watched from the sidelines silently, drinking from a bottle of ginger ale, as he kept an eye on Robin. He liked to push people slightly out of their comfort zones to get them to try things they’d never considered before, but if things started getting <em>actually </em>too much for her, he’d be ready to bail her out.</p><p>The Time Lord melted quietly into the shadows, watching, as Robin slowly opened up, but there was something else he’d noticed.</p><p>She was glancing quite a lot across the room. Not at the Doctor, but at someone else, Heather if the conversations the Doctor was overhearing were any indication.</p><p>The Time Lord pushed off the wall, weaving through the crowd of drunken kids. He probably should’ve been noticed by now, but they all looked too caught up in the drinking and the dancing and the loud noises to register him.</p><p>The Doctor appeared at Robin’s side. “Go to her.” He recommended, quietly whispering to her.</p><p>Robin stopped talking to the group she was with. “To who?”</p><p>“Heather, duh.” The Doctor rolled his eyes. “I’m no idiot, I’ve counted twelve different longing glances in the past half hour.”</p><p>Robin paled. “Y-You… You can’t tell!”</p><p>“Of course I’m not going to tell!” The Doctor replied. “Now, are you going to go over there and dance with her or what?”</p><p>“I-I can’t…” Robin stammered. “I can’t just go over there and dance, I’ll make a total ass of myself.”</p><p>“No,” The Doctor retorted. “<em>This </em>is making a total arse of yourself.” He said, walking over to the stereo. He took the sonic screwdriver, pressed the button, and the music cut out, as the tape was ejected.</p><p>“Hey!” Steve himself shouted, finally coming from wherever he was hiding. “What the hell are you doing!? Who <em>are </em>you!?”</p><p>“Ah, hello!” The Time Lord waved to the crowd, all eyes square on him now. “I’m the Doctor!” He announced, holding the sonic screwdriver like a microphone as he put a new tape in. The stereo’s speakers whined as his voice was carried around. “I just wanna say, great party, beats some of my school ones to shame!”</p><p>“Great,” Steve replied with dripping sarcasm. “Now, why don’t you leave?”</p><p>“Well, I can’t do that without thanking you for being such a gracious host!” The Doctor charismatically replied. “I’ll get out of your hair, really, I will, but first allow me to express my gratitude by performing one of my people’s ancient ballads!”</p><p>The Time Lord pressed the button, the tape whirring as a saxophone intro started up, backed by drums and the clapping of a tambourine.</p><p>He’d been looking for an excuse to <em>truly </em>test the singing skills of his new body. Funiculi Funicula didn’t count, he could sing that in every body.</p><p>“I feel so unsure.” The Doctor sang into the sonic screwdriver, voice harmonizing with the song effortlessly. “As I take your hand and lead you to the dance floor.”</p><p>He hadn’t heard this song in ages, never mind <em>performed </em>it. He likely never would have, but you do strange things to chase away boredom. And, in fairness, this new face was certainly a showy one.</p><p>“As the music dies something in your eyes,” The Doctor danced around, looking for Robin. “Calls to mind a silver screen and all its sad goodbyes.”</p><p>His eyes fell on Robin, who was standing there, looking shocked and awed as the other teenagers looked like they were slowly getting into it.</p><p>The Doctor jerked his head, gesturing to Heather. “I'm never gonna dance again, guilty feet have got no rhythm. Though it’s easy to pretend, I know you're not a fool. I should have known better than to cheat a friend and waste a chance that I'd been given. So I'm never gonna dance again, the way I danced with you. Never without your love.”</p><p>The Time Lord looked around to the still slightly confused crowd.</p><p>“Come on, everybody!” The Doctor flapped his arms wildly. “DANCE!”</p><p>The drop hit, and the teenagers began to dance as the Doctor sung like his life depended on it.</p><p>“Tonight the music seems so loud!” The Doctor madly boogied, owning the floor as Robin got the courage to go over to Heather. “I wish that we could lose this crowd. Maybe it's better this way, we'd hurt each other with the things we want to say.”</p><p>Was this situation ridiculous? Yes.</p><p>Was the Doctor reveling in it? Absolutely.</p><p>Oddly enough, serenading a crowd of teenagers with Careless Whisper just months before the song would be published, all so the Doctor could help a girl he just met work up the courage to dance with another pretty girl, was <em>not </em>the strangest thing he’d ever done.</p><p>No, that went to the time where he and a guy who somehow turned himself into a pickle had to rescue a sacred heifer from being turned into mincemeat.</p><p>“We could have been so could together.” The Doctor continued belting it out, as Robin finally made it to Heather. “We could have lived this dance forever.” He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it was obvious that Robin’s words were having the intended effect, and the two began dancing alongside each other. “But now, who’s gonna dance with me?”</p><p>The Doctor snapped his fingers, pointing with a grin, as the saxophone filled the air throughout the house, backed by the Time Lord’s dulcet tones, echoing far out into Hawkins.</p><p>----------</p><p>The campaign Mike and the others had planned was <em>long</em>. El thought they had been getting close to the end of it when they said that they were only <em>halfway </em>through, as the clock began to approach midnight.</p><p>The others were still brimming with energy, but El was quickly getting tired, and she yawned.</p><p>“I’m gonna go to bed.” She declared, getting up.</p><p>“What!?” Dustin asked in response. “It’s only one A.M! You can’t go to bed now!”</p><p>“Tired.” El sleepily blinked, unrolling the sleeping bag she carried with her, laying it out underneath one of the blanket forts.</p><p>Will yawned as well. “Yeah, that sounds like a good idea… Besides, we don’t wanna wake the others upstairs up.”</p><p>“B-But-“ Mike stuttered.</p><p>“Tomorrow.” El stated, slipping into the sleeping bag.</p><p>Mike sighed, but acquiesced, going to turn off the lights.</p><p>El’s head hit the pillow, and as she drifted to sleep, she smiled.</p><p>She was glad to have friends.</p><p>-----------</p><p>By one in the morning, the party at Harrington’s was winding down.</p><p>After the Doctor had finished with Careless Whisper, the teenagers had requested more and more songs out of him. Once the 2000s started rolling around, everyone who attended this party would be hopelessly confused at first, but hopefully just attribute it to misremembering things.</p><p>The Doctor stretched, taking down a cold glass of water to soothe his throat, as he looked around for Robin.</p><p>She and Heather had… absconded with each other, shall we say.</p><p>The Time Lord was gearing up to leave, satisfied that no laws had been broken other than the underage drinking (which he really couldn’t get mad at, given his own propensity for making trouble back during his academy years), when he looked outside, spotting someone sitting on the diving board over the pool.</p><p>Odd. It may have been a heated pool but even with that swimming at this hour wasn’t going to be ideal. Plus, she seemed to be… down. And fully-clothed, not prepared in the slightest for proper swimming.</p><p>The Doctor walked out quietly, careful not to disturb the passed-out remaining partygoers as he headed outside.</p><p>“You okay?” The Time Lord asked.</p><p>The girl jumped, spinning to face the Doctor. “Yeah, I’m fine.”</p><p>The Doctor approached, sitting down on the side of the pool, looking at her. “You know… I’ve noticed everybody else in this place seemed to be having a good, fun time. Not you. Why?”</p><p>She scoffed. “What? Is not having fun a crime?”</p><p>“It’s not.” The Doctor replied. “But it’s not just not having fun with you, is it? It’s like there’s something on your mind, and when you try to have fun, it pops back into your mind.”</p><p>The girl looked at the Doctor suspiciously. “How do you know that?”</p><p>“I’m old.” The Doctor honestly answered. “I’ve been like that enough times to know when someone else is going through it.”</p><p>“…Do you really?” She rhetorically asked. “Do you know what it’s like to lose someone?”</p><p>“Better than most.” The Doctor returned. “I’ve lost lots of someones.”</p><p>The girl slowly nodded, looking into the pool water.</p><p>“You want to talk about it?” The Time Lord quietly asked.</p><p>“…Her name was Barb.” She sniffled. “We came over here for a party. Not like this one, just me, her, Steve, Tommy, and Carol…” She swallowed. “When I woke up, she was gone. I thought she went home, but I came back the next day and her car was still here. I haven’t seen her since.”</p><p>“…Yeah, I understand.” The Doctor sympathetically replied. “I can’t pretend to know everything, but I do come pretty close, and there’s one thing I can tell you. It gets better.”</p><p>She huffed. “It’s not even about her being gone… I just don’t know what happened.”</p><p>“I’m sure you’ll find out eventually.”</p><p>“Will I? Cause it seems to me the only one who even gives a shit are me and her parents!” She angrily retorted, a month of pent-up frustrations being directed at him. “They’re the only ones doing anything about it, because god knows the Chief isn’t doing jack!” She sighed. “Sorry… I shouldn’t be yelling at you.”</p><p>“Don’t worry about it.” The Doctor waved it away, standing back up. “You’re angry that your friend is gone, and that’s okay, because it means you care about her. One word of advice for you; Don’t give that up. Keep pressing until you find out. That means you’ll get closure eventually.”</p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>The Doctor offered the girl a two-fingered salute, before he went back inside to drink some more.</p><p>----------</p><p>El was woken up in the middle of the night by a loud bang, almost like thunder. The interior of the TARDIS was totally soundproofed to the outside. You could drop a tornado on it and it wouldn’t even rumble. A couple of storms had blown through Hawkins since they’d settled down, but nothing that really bothered her.</p><p>But this was different.</p><p>There was no storm, and the bangs weren’t powerful enough to shake the house, but every time one of those bangs went off outside, El flashed back to the diner, seeing Benny’s head get blown off right in front of her.</p><p>Every time one of the bangs went off, El flinched, whimpering.</p><p>“El?” A quiet voice whispered from across the room. “El, what’s wrong?”</p><p>She followed the source, eyes landing on Will’s face just barely visible in the dark.</p><p>“…scared.” Was all El could muster, too shaken to even focus on making the effort to articulate properly.</p><p>“You’re scared?” Will whispered back. “Of what?”</p><p>“…the bangs.”</p><p>“…the fireworks.” Will realized. “You’re scared of the fireworks.”</p><p>“Yes.” El replied quietly, nodding for good measure.</p><p>“How come?” Will inquired.</p><p>El didn’t respond, shaking in her proverbial boots.</p><p>A few seconds passed, and she could feel the temperature raise slightly and the floor vibrate minutely as something approached her.</p><p>“Here.” Will quietly whispered, laying down next to her. “Don’t worry, I’m right here.”</p><p>El nodded, closing her eyes, feeling just slightly safer having a friend nearby. “Thank you.”</p><p>“Anytime.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Here's something interesting, the song that the Doctor originally sung was Toxic by Britney Spears as a callback to the second episode of the revived run. I changed it because I figured Careless Whisper would be more appropriate.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0101"><h2>101. The Dream World: Hangover</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>There are consequences to partying too hard. The Doctor's about to experience one first hand.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ngh… Okay, people, today we’re gonna be talking about unified field theory.” The Doctor grunted, forcing his eyes open. “Not string theory, that’s dark magic.” The rays from the sun hit his corneas, as he sat up, leaves crunching under the weight of his movement. “Huh?” The Doctor frowned in confusion, looking around. “Oh, I’m sorry, I think I’m gonna have to move to a different room. This one looks… under repair…” He mumbled, walking through the tree line.</p><p>“Where am I?” The Doctor wondered, looking around at the thick canopy of trees. “How did I get here?” He yawned, stepping over a root. “I’m sore all over, what happened last night?”</p><p>The Time Lord walked past a tree trunk, grateful to be shielded from the bright morning sun.</p><p>“What am I even <em>doing </em>out here?” The Doctor rubbed his sore forehead. “I remember there was… Uma Thurman. I sung Elvis… and I think I stopped a plot involving… bratwursts? Or was that dinner?”</p><p>The Time Lord shook his head, pulling the wool beanie over his eyes.</p><p>“Well, I mean obviously <em>something </em>happened!” The Doctor angrily muttered to himself. “I woke up in the middle of a forest again!”</p><p>He came to a small creek running through the woods, and jumped over, barely keeping from stumbling back into the water.</p><p>“Yeah, this isn’t my finest hour, is it?” He rhetorically asked of himself. “I woke up in the middle of nowhere, my clothes smell strongly of vomit and beer, El has probably no idea where I am, I probably got a bunch of teenagers in trouble with their parents…” He shook his head. “I’ve never hit rock bottom before, but I guess THIS is what it’s like. The Oncoming Storm, reduced to a drunk in Indiana.”</p><p>He grunted as he almost stumbled over himself.</p><p>“I mean, I guess this is actually a bit better.” The Doctor mumbled. “Last time something like this happened was after the Time War ended. And <em>that </em>time was worse because I woke up in a garbage compactor. Actually, that time was way, way worse because I had just regenerated. Good, <em>God!</em>” He frustratedly breathed, looking out at the 7-Eleven in the distance.</p><p>The closest 7-Eleven, for reference, was about twenty minutes out of Hawkins. And that was at <em>highway </em>speeds.</p><p>“How did I get out here!? Am I a WEREWOLF!?” The Doctor bellowed to himself. “Alright, I should probably get back to civilization. I have the clothes for it, but I don’t wanna be a mountain man. It’s just not a career that’s appealing to me. Besides, I don’t have the beard for it.”</p><p>He frowned as he climbed down the steep hill, walking to the payphone outside the building.</p><p>“Speaking of beards, where did Robin get to?” He wondered aloud. “I mean, I wasn’t expecting her to still be around me the morning after the party, but it was my idea to go to that damn party to begin with. I hope she’s fine.” He snorted. “Who am I kidding, she went to bed with a pretty girl, she’s probably doing fantastic. I, on the other hand, am <em>not </em>as fantastic.”</p><p>The Time Lord pulled the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket, and soniced the payphone, before punching in the number.</p><p><em>“Hello?” </em>Karen Wheeler picked up.</p><p>“Ah, hello Karen.” The Doctor greeted. “Just calling in to check on my daughter. Could you put her through?”</p><p><em>“Sure. MIKE!” </em>The woman yelled away from the phone. <em>“El has a call!”</em></p><p>He waited for the click.</p><p><em>“Hello?” </em>El asked in her quiet way of speaking. She also seemed to be developing an accent rather like the Doctor’s, funny.</p><p>“El, it’s me.” The Doctor replied.</p><p><em>“Dad.” </em>El’s smile was audible. <em>“What’s up?”</em></p><p>“Well, I just wanted to give you a heads-up, it might be a while before I come pick you up.” He warned.</p><p>
  <em>“What? How come?”</em>
</p><p>“Long story.” The Doctor rubbed his face. “I got blackout drunk at a party at Steve Harrington’s and woke up in the middle of the woods. Again.”</p><p>El sighed. <em>“Are you okay?”</em></p><p>“Just fine.” The Doctor answered. “I mean, aside from my clothes and the fact that I’m now the new party king of Hawkins, I’m peachy. It’ll be a while, but I’ll be back. When I do, we can go out to get something to eat, what do you say? My treat.”</p><p><em>“Okay.” </em>El responded. <em>“See you soon. Love you.”</em></p><p>The Doctor always smiled when she said that. “Love you too, kiddo. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta find some way of getting back to town.” He placed the phone back. “Right, now… how to get back? I woke up sober at least, so there’s that.” The Doctor strode into the building, going for the coffee maker. “But there’s still the persistent problem of <em>how I wound up in the woods.</em>” He mumbled to himself, setting it to make the blackest cup of coffee, before he soniced the ATM out of the view of the cashier, grabbing as much money as he could.</p><p>The Doctor grabbed a handful of candy, his coffee, and slammed the cash down, not waiting for change before he shoved everything in his pockets, throwing the coffee back.</p><p>Instantly, the Doctor went from sluggish to more alert than he had ever been, his brain beginning to work again.</p><p>“Ah! Bwbwbwaaah!” The Doctor twitched as he walked out. “Coffee! I love coffee, I should drink more coffee! Now, where is Hawkins relative to here?” He looked around.</p><p>Looking around, the Doctor spotted an eighteen-wheeler hitting the road in the direction he needed to go.</p><p>“Bad idea? Probably!” The Doctor said to himself, discarding his cup in the bin, before taking a running jump onto the back. The wind whipped in his face as he held tightly onto the bars on the back doors. “Twenty-minute ride, here we go!”</p><p>------------</p><p>“That your dad?” Mike asked, as El placed the phone back.</p><p>The girl nodded, sitting back down at the table. “Wanted to let me know he’d be home late.”</p><p>“What’s he doing?” Will inquired.</p><p>El shrugged. “Said he was at a party at Steve Harrington’s.”</p><p>Dustin blinked, looking at El inquisitively. “Steve’s parents are out of town, aren’t they?”</p><p>The girl shrugged again. “I don’t know, why are you asking me?”</p><p>“He’s been partying with teenagers all night.” Lucas replied. “Guy that old, doesn’t that sound weird?”</p><p>“…Why would it be weird?” El asked after a moment.</p><p>Mike looked curious. “You really have no clue?”</p><p>El shook her head. “I don’t understand. He spends all his time at home, he has to go out and spend time with some other people sometimes.”</p><p>Dustin looked suspicious. “Your dad doesn’t have any friends his age? No people he works with or anything.”</p><p>“Dad doesn’t work.” El answered simply.</p><p>Mike frowned. “If he doesn’t work, how do you guys get money?”</p><p>El slowly shrugged again. “I don’t know.”</p><p>“You don’t know?” Lucas repeated.</p><p>“Guys, stop it, alright?” Will ordered, looking between them. “Like you have to explain everything your parents do.”</p><p>“What!?” Dustin asked in response. “We’re curious!”</p><p>“Right.” Will rolled his eyes and shook his head.</p><p>“…I should probably go home.” El stood up, getting her stuff together.</p><p>“You’re leaving?” Mike asked. “I’m sorry, did we push too hard-“</p><p>“No, no.” El shook her head. “I don’t know when he’s gonna be back, and he said we’d go out to eat when he got home.”</p><p>“Oh…” Mike slowly nodded. “Okay.”</p><p>“…It was fun, though.” El smiled. “Thanks. Bye, guys.” She offered, exiting.</p><p>Will sighed, as the door shut behind her. “Great going, guys. You just chased away the <em>one </em>girl who actually tolerates us!”</p><p>“Will, her dad is called ‘The Doctor’ and they somehow make enough money to buy that house all in one go and not have to worry about working!” Lucas retorted. “He’s obviously a-“</p><p>“Russian spy!” Dustin cut him off, pointing. “Think about it, ‘The Doctor’ is exactly the kind of codename a spy would use!”</p><p>“No, idiot!” Lucas snapped. “I was going to say dealer!”</p><p>Dustin looked to Lucas, confused. “Why the hell would he be a dealer?”</p><p>“Why <em>else </em>would a guy go to a party filled with teenagers!?” Lucas retorted. “And the guy vanishes for hours without telling El where he’s going!?”</p><p>Will huffed. “Guys, you’re overthinking it. He’s probably just on like a… secret date or something.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>“AUGH, I REGRET THIS!” The Doctor shouted as he hung on for dear life. “THE METAL IS COLD! ACK!” He flinched as something landed on his shoulder. “BIRD CRAP, EXCELLENT! IT’S TOO BAD THERE’S NOBODY SHOOTING AT ME, THAT’D REALLY COMPLETE THE EXPERIENCE!”</p><p>----------</p><p>“I mean…” Mike looked to Will. “It is kind of weird. You’ve known El for longer than any of us, she spends the most time with you, and how much do you <em>actually </em>know about her family?”</p><p>“Um…” Will stammered, sighing. “Her dad likes hats?”</p><p>“Really?” Lucas crossed his arms. “That’s it?”</p><p>“Hey, in fairness…” Will held up a finger. “It’s not like she could tell me a lot herself.”</p><p>Mike looked intrigued. “What do you mean?”</p><p>“Well, I get the sense that she doesn’t know a lot about her dad either.” Will replied. “The only things she could say were that he liked eating fish sticks with custard and the color blue and bow ties.”</p><p>“…And <em>how </em>is that not weird to you?” Lucas asked in response.</p><p>Dustin took in a breath, eyes wide. “What if all those things are code for something else!? Like she heard him talking into the phone about it one night to other spies as part of like a secret delivery order or something!?”</p><p>“Will you <em>stop </em>with the spy thing!?” Lucas requested of the curly-haired boy.</p><p>Dustin inhaled again. “What if they’re in witness protection!?”</p><p>“WHY,” Lucas began, “Would they be in witness protection!?”</p><p>Mike and Will glanced at each other, then to the other two as they spitballed theories.</p><p>“What if he was in the mafia but he decided to rat!?” Dustin considered. “And they were moved to Hawkins because it’s quiet!?” He fearfully breathed. “We’re friends with his kid! The mafia’s gonna catch up to him and when they do we’re gonna get whacked!”</p><p>“DUSTIN, JUST CALM THE FUCK DOWN!” Lucas commanded</p><p>“I CAN’T CALM DOWN, WE’RE TARGETS NOW!” Dustin hyperventilated. “I’M GONNA HAVE TO GO HOME AND PACK ALL MY SHIT AND GET READY TO FLEE THE COUNTRY!”</p><p>“Guys,” Mike stepped in, “Guys!” He looked between them. “Both of you, stop. Nobody’s getting killed.”</p><p>Dustin nodded, and slowed his breathing. “So, what do we do then?”</p><p>Will looked at each one of them. “Who says we have to do anything?”</p><p>“Come on, Will, you have to admit.” Mike looked to him. “It <em>is </em>a bit weird.”</p><p>“…Yeah.” He reluctantly granted, scratching his elbow. “They are kinda weird.” Will admitted. “But think about it for a second. So are we.”</p><p>Dustin frowned. “No, we’re not.”</p><p>“We stay in the basement all day rolling dice and writing stuff down with pencils.” Will retorted.</p><p>“…when you put it that way, sure.”</p><p>“And we’re the only friends she’s got!” Will looked between the three seriously. “She told me herself she didn’t have anyone else besides her dad. And she’s <em>slow</em>, remember?”</p><p>The others looked a bit ashamed, not meeting Will’s eyes. “Yeah.” Mike spoke up first. “We can forgive a bit of weirdness.”</p><p>Will nodded approvingly, then looked to the others.</p><p>“…We do need a girl in the party.” Dustin found his voice.</p><p>“Yeah.” Lucas concurred.</p><p>Will nodded one last time in approval and moved to sit down. Privately, he couldn’t deny his own thoughts.</p><p>There <em>were </em>some things off about El and her father. Add to that the fact that Troy had tripped over absolutely nothing on a dry floor, and El seemed to have something to do with it…</p><p>It was curious, to say the least.</p><p>----------</p><p>The Doctor shut the door behind him as he entered the TARDIS. The old girl shot a gust of cold air at him and he scowled.</p><p>“Shut up, you’re not my mother!”</p><p>Something hissed overhead, and the Doctor found himself spluttering as gallons upon gallons of water came crashing down upon him.</p><p>The Doctor blinked, spitting water out of his mouth. He could taste the cleansers inside as his clothes suddenly dried, all grime being wiped away, smelling fresher than they ever had before. “Well, at least I’m clean now… but I could do without the sober!” He threw over his shoulder, marching up the steps to the sitting room.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The door clanged as it was open, and El, sitting in front of the TV watching an episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, turned to look at the Time Lord.</p><p>El blinked, looking the Doctor. “You… don’t look so good.”</p><p>“Got wasted, went to a party, sung at the party, woke up in the woods, had to ride back to town on the back of a semi-truck.” The Doctor rattled off, flopping on the couch. “That’s my day for you, yours?”</p><p>“Good.” El smiled. “…where are we going?”</p><p>“Going?” The Doctor repeated. “Why are we going?”</p><p>“To <em>eat,” </em>El exasperatedly reminded him. “Remember?”</p><p>“Oh, right. Forgot about that.” The Doctor looked down at his clothes. “Might wanna change, first.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0102"><h2>102. The Dream World: The Last Great Prank War</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor is many things. A Time Lord, a Renegade, a hero to many, the Great Demon to many others. To El, however, he’s just her dad. A dad who can do things no other person in the universe can, but her dad nonetheless.</p><p>That makes the Doctor feel all warm and fuzzy inside. He loves her so much. Not like Rose, the one who’d helped him start to come to terms with what he did in the Time War. But more like Donna, his best friend, his other half only in the most platonic of ways.</p><p>He had a soft spot for human children, and another for lost souls. Roll the two into one, and it wasn’t surprising he became attached.</p><p>Some days, however, she’s harder to love than others. Why, you ask?</p><p>Because she discovered quite the propensity for practical jokes.</p><p>The first one was pulled on the Doctor when he was going to the bathroom in the middle of the night. In his sleep-addled haze, he hadn’t noticed the slight sheen over the doorway, and walked right into a thick layer of plastic wrap.</p><p>“Ack!” The Doctor hacked as he became tangled up in himself, falling to the floor.</p><p>Pulling the plastic away from his head, the Doctor looked around, and his eyes narrowed, as he saw El standing in the doorway, laughing. “How long have you been waiting there?”</p><p>“Not long.” El giggled. “You use the bathroom at the same time every night. I’ve been here fifteen minutes.”</p><p>“Very funny.” The Doctor scowled as he pushed himself up. “Hope you got a picture of it cause it won’t happen again. What on earth made you decide to do that anyway?”</p><p>El grinned mischievously in response. “Will was talking about pulling pranks on Troy and James when school started back up. He said I could do it on you too.”</p><p>“Ha ha.” The Doctor humorlessly replied. “I just want to tell you… you have no <em>idea </em>the kind of forces you’re messing with.”</p><p>El tilted her head, not intimidated in the slightest. “It was funny. Might do it again.”</p><p>“Alright…” The Doctor slowly closed the door, “But this means war.”</p><p>------------</p><p>Contrary to what the Doctor had told her, he didn’t intend to get her back after the first prank. Mainly because he recognized that it was just harmless fun. Also because he didn’t seriously think that El would try pulling another one.</p><p>His lime-green tinted hair, courtesy of a dye provided by the TARDIS slipped into his shampoo, proved otherwise.</p><p>She’d messed with his hair… he was sensitive about his hair.</p><p>“Alright, El…” The Doctor tugged his track jacket, no bow tie to straighten. “Don’t play with fire if you’re not ready to get burnt.”</p><p>----------</p><p>The first trick he pulls is simple. Elegant. Delightfully devilish. All he does is put everything an inch or two off-centre, in different directions for each object, and then he lowers the friction on the floor just slightly.</p><p>And ups the cushioning factor on the floor. He’s trying to fluster El, not hurt her.</p><p>Hiding in wait, he sets up a tiny camera in under the mirror on her dresser, and hides in the closet with the door cracked, watching.</p><p>El comes into her room and starts playing around with the makeup the Doctor had gifted her for Christmas. Singing a song as she coated her face in the stuff, the Doctor impatiently waited as El went about her business.</p><p>She stepped back, going to look for something she’d stashed elsewhere, before she bumped into a stool, and staggered.</p><p>“Oh shit!” El cursed as her feet slipped and slid against the floor, before she fell forward, gasping as she hit the carpet.</p><p>She looked surprised and like she had the wind knocked out of her, but nothing serious.</p><p>“HA!” The Doctor belly-laughed, pointing. “HA HA HA! HA HA!”</p><p>“Dad!” El whined, slipping around like the floor was made of slick ice. “Not funny!”</p><p>“No, you’re right!” The Doctor cackled. “It was hilarious!”</p><p>El narrowed her eyes, a mental hand wrapping around the Doctor’s ankle, and she tugged.</p><p>“Whoa!” The Doctor staggered as he fell as well. “Ack!” He huffed, looking to her. “Well, for <em>that, </em>you can figure out how to get yourself up without slipping around on your own.” He grabbed the doorknob, pulling himself up.</p><p>“Dad!” El called as she slipped and slid. “Dad, no! Get back here!”</p><p>The Doctor ignored her, stepping out. He wasn’t too concerned, figuring that the TARDIS would help El if she really needed it, but that was all the girl needed to know what she wanted to do next.</p><p>The Doctor was going to pay.</p><p>But… how to make that happen?</p><p>-----------</p><p>El contemplated what to do, pacing back and forth, deep in thought. As she silently ruminated, a bottle materialized on the counter.</p><p>She sniffed the bottle’s contents, and grinned.</p><p>------------</p><p>The Doctor walked into the sitting room, grabbing a bottle of ginger beer from his stash. Popping the top off, he took a swig.</p><p>The Time Lord swore he could hear glass shattering as his eyes went the size of planets, and he spat the atrocious concoction out.</p><p>“Is this…<em> sparkling wine!?”</em> The Doctor erupted into sick heaving, as he shot to his feet, throwing the bottle to his side. “HUEGH!”</p><p>El stood off to the corner, giggling quietly at the Time Lord’s over-the-top antics.</p><p>-----------</p><p>They called it many things. The Prank War in Heaven, the Battle of Hawkins, the Last Great Prank War…</p><p>Mainly, the residents of Hawkins just called it ‘that jackass and his kid making trouble for the rest of us.’</p><p>Because while the Doctor and El’s battle had <em>started </em>in the TARDIS, the scope of their conflict expanded to include the rest of Hawkins as well.</p><p>Like two warring gods, with the puny mortals caught in the crossfire.</p><p>For instance, the Doctor entering a toy store to look around caused every object inside to come to life, cornering him into a storeroom, before they all shut down. An attempt to make sure El wouldn’t get hot water while she was staying the night at the Byers’s caused every pipe in the town to freeze rock solid. And then, there was El’s attempt to make sure that the Doctor couldn’t watch his stories caused half the town to call the local cable stations, confused about why there was a pixelated pop tart cat… thing flying through space when they were supposed to be getting <em>Days of Our Lives.</em></p><p>The locals were, expectedly, becoming… rather unhappy.</p><p>“Okay,” Chief Hopper leaned on his desk, glaring laser fire into the Doctor, “We’ve got you for assault-“</p><p>The Doctor huffed, crossing his arms. “I didn’t <em>assault </em>anyone. I pushed them out of the way so they wouldn’t get caught in the crossfire. Honestly, can’t do one good deed around here.”</p><p>“Vandalism-“</p><p>“We cleaned it all up afterward!” The Doctor pointed insistently.</p><p>“Being a public nuisance-”</p><p>“The lady said I <em>couldn’t </em>walk on water, so I just proved her wrong!”</p><p>“And property damage.” Hopper looked about as far from happy as it could be physically possible.</p><p>“…Well, yeah, there is that.”</p><p>“And what’s this I heard about someone with your description going to a party full of teenagers?” He pressed.</p><p>The Time Lord drew his lips into a line, turning away from Hopper. “Last I checked, having fun wasn’t a crime.”</p><p>“It isn’t… but you gotta understand, it’s looking pretty bad for you.” Hopper growled. “Fines out the ass, maybe even some jail time…”</p><p>The Doctor crossed his arms, kicking his feet up on the desk. “Fines? Easy.”</p><p>Hopper scowled. “You should be a bit less nonchalant, buddy. I’ve got all I need, and there’s <em>nothing </em>more than the people of this town would like than to see you in prison.”</p><p>“Fine, put me in prison.” The Doctor smiled. “I’d like to see you try.”</p><p>“That a threat?”</p><p>“No.” The Doctor shrugged. “Just a request. Cause, while you’ve been talking, I’ve already made my daring escape.”</p><p>Hopper laughed derisively. “Oh, really?”</p><p>The Doctor winked. “Glance out the window.”</p><p>Hopper shot a quick look, but looked properly back, once he saw it.</p><p>The Doctor was outside, sitting in the driver seat of a yellow car, waving, before driving off.</p><p>“HEY!” Hopper bellowed furiously, sprinting out after him. “HEY!”</p><p>“SO LONG!” The Doctor taunted as he vanished into the distance.</p><p>-----------</p><p>Eventually, the Last Great Prank War comes to a sudden, violent, terrible end.</p><p>Both sides, having scoured all of Hawkins, leaving no inch of the town untouched in their perpetual conflict, eventually ran into the mathematical certainty that their pranks would overlap one another…</p><p>In a spectacular mishap involving fire extinguisher of Oreo cream and a defabricator cannon.</p><p>A misfire from the Oreo extinguisher had clogged the barrel of the defabricator, causing the beam to be split when the timer on the firing mechanism hit zero.</p><p>In the span of three seconds, all fibers on the Doctor and El had been reduced to component atoms… except for, miraculously, his beanie.</p><p>It was karma, in a way, for the havoc they’d inadvertently rendered upon the rest of Hawkins. A cold, dark, wet walk back to the TARDIS, the only thing to preserve their dignities being the dark.</p><p>When the two got back home, fallen into silence, they both could only think one thought.</p><p>Prank wars sucked.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0103"><h2>103. The Dream World: Theta Sigma's Home for Wayward Teenagers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After those first months in Hawkins, things went by… fairly slowly. The Last Great Prank War had ended just before school started back up, which meant El was back out of the TARDIS most days, meaning the Doctor had to find something to occupy his time <em>in </em>town.</p><p>The property damage had been paid for courtesy of UNIT (whereupon which the Doctor was treated to a three-hour long angry lecture and the promise of ‘oversight.’), which got Hopper off the Time Lord’s back at least.</p><p>So, while El was back in school, the Doctor occupied his time by wandering aimlessly. Chatting with squirrels, spying on birds, extending diplomatic ties with the flowers, all sorts of things.</p><p>Checking his watch, he noted the time to be 4 o’clock. He’d be back at the TARDIS by now, but El was going to head home with Will to spend the night again.</p><p>The Doctor sighed, flopping down in the bench, absent-mindedly rubbing his face.</p><p>Hours ticked by, the exact number a mystery to even the Doctor himself, before he finally noticed the orange tinge to the sky, violet streaks appearing as the final minutes of day passed.</p><p>Sighing, the Doctor pushed himself to his feet, and made the trek back to Bessie.</p><p>As he walked, sniffling and shivering caught his attention, and he turned, to a figure sitting on a park bench, wrapped tight in winter clothing, but still obviously very cold.</p><p>The Doctor grinned widely and happily. “Robin!” He recognized, he hadn’t seen her since the party at Harrington’s.</p><p>The girl looked up, looking haggard, obviously having seen better days. “H-Hey…” She shivered, teeth chittering. “Hey, Doc.”</p><p>“Well, actually, it’s Doc<em>tor</em>.” The Time Lord corrected, then frowned. “Whatcha doing out here?”</p><p>Robin glanced up, then looked away. “Just waiting.”</p><p>The Doctor inquisitively tilted his head. “Waiting for who?”</p><p>“…my ride.” Robin answered after a moment, like she didn’t know the answer herself.</p><p>The Doctor’s eyes narrowed, as he looked her over. She looked… thin, almost emaciated, and in this cold, that was far from good.</p><p>“Rob,” The Doctor quietly pressed, sitting down next to her. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>“Nothing.” The girl responded. “I’m fine.”</p><p>“Is ‘I’m fine’ some special code for really not fine at all?” The Doctor asked in response.</p><p>“Huh?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled sadly. “Cause, I’m fine too.”</p><p>Robin huffed, trying to laugh, but it fell flat.</p><p>“Here.” The Doctor offered her a takeout tray.</p><p>Robin blinked, looking at the Doctor in confusion. “Where did you…?”</p><p>“I always make sure to pack something to eat. Force of habit.” The Doctor held it out to her. “You look like you could use it more than I could.”</p><p>Robin looked to the Doctor’s kind yet insistent face, then back to the tray, taking it slowly from him. She popped it open, and began to tear into the chicken inside, the food still hot and fresh.</p><p>“It’s been a while since you’ve had a proper meal, hasn’t it?” The Time Lord quietly pressed, as Robin ate.</p><p>She didn’t say anything, but her silence spoke volumes.</p><p>“What are you doing out here Robin?” The Doctor questioned. “Really?”</p><p>“…My parents found out, about me and Heather.” The girl admitted after a moment.</p><p>“And they left you all alone!?”</p><p>Robin looked down. “I don’t know what country you’re from, but being gay isn’t exactly popular around here.”</p><p>The Doctor snorted. “That’s ridiculous! You’re a human being with a heart and soul, no matter who you’re attracted to!”</p><p>“My mom and dad don’t see it that way.” Robin half-heartedly shrugged. “They threw me out of the house when word got back to them.”</p><p>The Doctor scowled. “Well, you know what? Any parent willing to throw their child out, a <em>fifteen-year old </em>at that, for something they can’t control aren’t deserving of being parents in the first place.” He looked to her properly. “But why are you out here? Don’t you have anywhere else to go?”</p><p>“I told you, I don’t have many friends.” Robin swallowed. “And Heather, well… we still don’t know each other that well.”</p><p>“…how long?” The Doctor asked.</p><p>“Long enough.”</p><p>The Time Lord bit his lip, feeling terrible for the girl, and terrible on his on behalf. Robin wouldn’t have ever slept with Heather if it wasn’t for the Doctor’s intervention. If he’d stayed out of things, she wouldn’t have ever been kicked out at all, probably.</p><p>He debated internally on what to do next, before he came to a decision. Robin needed the help, so that’s what he was going to do.</p><p>The Doctor got to his feet, tugging his jacket down. He turned to Robin, and held out his hand. “Come with me.” He gently requested.</p><p>Robin frowned, her eyebrows furrowing. “Where?”</p><p>“I’m not going to let you stay out here in the cold on your own.” The Doctor answered. “’Specially not tonight. It’s supposed to be a record-breaker.”</p><p>Robin shook her head. “I can handle myself. I’m strong enough.”</p><p>“It’s strong being able to survive in tough situations,” The Doctor began in retort, “But it’s <em>stronger </em>letting others in to help. I have a couple of spare rooms in my house. Tonight, at least, please.”</p><p>Robin kept quiet for a couple of seconds, before she stood up, slowly nodding. “It’s been… a while since I got to sleep somewhere warm.”</p><p>“I’ll make sure the heating’s on full.” The Doctor promised, gesturing with his head toward Bessie. “Come on.”</p><p>-----------</p><p>Robin frowned, looking all around at the odd stuff installed into Bessie’s dash. “What kind of car <em>is</em> this?”</p><p>“A hobbyist’s project!” The Doctor replied over the wind, the beams from the headlamps piercing the night and illuminating their way. “She was in a right old state when I got her, had to fix her up myself! Installed all sorts of cool stuff!” He enthusiastically grinned. “I can even drive her by remote!”</p><p>Robin didn’t look as enthused. “It’s old.”</p><p>“She’s got <em>character!</em>” The Time Lord retorted, taking the turn onto the next street. Rolling down the rows of houses, they came to a driveway with a mailbox next to it, the number 1963 on the metal box in reflective lettering.</p><p>Pulling into the driveway, the Doctor put Bessie in park, and hopped out first, walking up to the front door.</p><p>Robin skeptically raised an eyebrow at the house, tinier than all the others. It couldn’t have been more than thirty feet on its longest side. It looked like it had an upper level, sure, but it was going to be <em>cramped.</em></p><p>“Okay,” The Doctor took the key out of his pocket, before turning to Robin. “I want you to just… keep calm and prepare yourself. What you’re about to see <em>can </em>be explained by the laws of science.”</p><p>Robin shivered, rubbing her arms. “I don’t care if it looks like a disaster in there, just open the damn door.”</p><p>The Doctor huffed, turning to the door. “Okay. Don’t say I didn’t warn you…” He unlocked the door, pushing it open, stepping aside to allow Robin purchase.</p><p>The girl poked her head in, jaw dropping in awe. The room before her was <em>huge</em>, easily bigger than what the outer boundaries of the house allowed. She scrambled back, looking to the Doctor.</p><p>The Time Lord merely waggled his fingers.</p><p>Robin stepped away, quickly sprinting around the outside of the house. Every window was backlit orange, more like glowing panels rather than actual viewports, and she couldn’t see inside, no matter how much she tried to focus through.</p><p>“B-But that’s not-!” Robin stuttered, coming back around to the front, looking to the Doctor, then back inside. “That room can’t fit! It’s taller! A-And it’s wider!” She spun around to the Doctor, hair whipping through the air. “It’s bigger on the inside!?”</p><p>The Doctor chuckled, stepping in after her, and shutting the door. “You should’ve seen it before. Much more impressive.”</p><p>“What the…” Robin breathed, looking around, and to the corridors extending far off past what should’ve been the outer boundaries of the exterior. “You’ve got a bigger on the inside house…”</p><p>“Welcome to the TARDIS!” The Doctor twirled around on the glass platform. “That’s Time And Relative Dimension In Space, don’t forget it!”</p><p>“You’ve got a house that’s bigger on the inside…” Robin repeated. “<em>How </em>do you have a house that’s bigger on the inside!?”</p><p>“Just a bit of transdimensional engineering.” The Doctor shot back. “Honestly, it’s not that hard to figure out when you figure out how to make a machine that can put more space in a certain space.”</p><p>Robin blinked. “That doesn’t make any sense…”</p><p>“No, it doesn’t, good eye!” The Doctor pointed. “If it helps, think of the inside as being stored in a pocket universe and the door is the connector to the outside.”</p><p>“Right…” Robin nodded, breathing heavily.</p><p>“You okay?” The Doctor kindly inquired, leaning on the brass railing. “Cause this place, it can make people feel a bit… you know…”</p><p>“Yeah, fine, fine, it’s just…” The girl swallowed, looking to the Doctor. “I don’t know how I forgot about it before, but… There is no 1963 Maple Street. But…” She looked away, eyebrows knitting together. “There always was too.”</p><p>“Perception filter.” The Time Lord helpfully explained. “Tricks your subconscious into believing there’s nothing out of place.”</p><p>Robin looked disturbed by that idea, as the Doctor checked his watch.</p><p>“Oh, good grief, it’s getting late.” He muttered. “Shall I show you to your quarters, Miss Robin?”</p><p>Robin stood still for a moment, nodding a second later. It wasn’t like she couldn’t trust him, he’d been nothing but forthcoming with her, and it was obvious he was entrusting a massive secret to her.</p><p>“Right this way.”</p><p>------------</p><p>“It’s not a lot,” The Doctor apologized, pushing the twin metal doors open. “Just your basic personnel accommodations, but it <em>should </em>be better than anything else you could get on this Earth, regardless.” He pointed to another set of doors. “Bathroom’s in there in case you need it. If you need me for whatever reason… don’t worry about it, the TARDIS will alert me, probably.”</p><p>“…Thank you.” Robin looked to the Doctor gratefully. “But… all this…” She gestured around. “The bigger on the inside, the perception thingy… who<em> are </em>you?”</p><p>The Time Lord smiled disarmingly. “I’m the Doctor.” He pivoted about on his heel, moving to exit before Robin could say anything else. “I’m just down the hall if you need me!” He threw over his shoulder as the door shut, and he walked through the halls of the TARDIS.</p><p>-----------</p><p>The console bleeped as the Doctor walked down the steps, going to check and make sure that he’d locked the TARDIS controls. He didn’t want a curious human hitting the wrong switch and flinging them into the 33<sup>rd</sup> century.</p><p>“I know, I know.” The Doctor said, as the TARDIS hummed. “You’re going to say I’m making a habit of making friends with teenagers.”</p><p>The TARDIS hissed, releasing steam into the Doctor’s face.</p><p>“Well, it was partially my fault she was homeless to begin with.” The Doctor replied. “You’re always harping about me taking responsibility for my actions, I thought you’d be happy.”</p><p>The console buzzed, red LEDs blinking on the panel up top.</p><p>“<em>No,”</em> The Doctor retorted, “I’m an adult. I can drink as much as I want to and party with whoever I want, thank you very much.”</p><p>A bell on the control unit dinged, and he can hear the message plain as day. <em>‘You’re killing yourself. If you weren’t trying to keep yourself tethered down because of that girl-‘</em></p><p>The Doctor clenched his fist. “Don’t you <em>dare</em>… Don’t you <em>DARE </em>try to imply that this is El’s fault!”</p><p>The console made a whine, and the Doctor sighed.</p><p>“No, no, I know…” The Doctor sighed, rubbing his face. “I know that’s not what you were trying to imply, I’m sorry. But… I’m all she has.” The Doctor mumbled, sitting down. “She’s all I have. I can’t just abandon her.”</p><p>The console emitted a low hum.</p><p>The Doctor snorted, a small smile appearing on his features for only a nanosecond. “Yeah… I’ve got attached. And as for Robin…” He looked to the corridor.</p><p>The console whirred, and the Doctor huffed again.</p><p>“I don’t know. Maybe we should start calling you ‘The Doctor’s Home for Wayward Teenagers’ instead of the TARDIS.”</p>
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